Battle of the Hearts
by legolascrazy17
Summary: “You’re not going anywhere, Hermione,” Ron said huskily, “Until I’m finished with you.” I shivered as the full implication of those words hit me. “Er, okay?” I barely managed to squeak. A witty RonHermione romance, written from the view of Miss Granger!
1. Sitting in His Lap

I hate him. I really do hate him.

Bloody Ronald Weasley. Adorable, lopsided grin, that simply makes me melt, those enticing baby-blue eyes, that luscious thick red hair I am forever itching to run my hands through, lightly freckled face I want to stroke and kiss like there's no tomorrow...Unwavering loyalty, Gryffindor courage, (and, yes, some well-hidden intelligence), talent on the Quidditch field (which also gives him that excellent physique), great sense of humor, the way his cute little nose wrinkles in disgust whenever Viktor Krum is mentioned...Blimey, I've fallen hard.

Now, normally that wouldn't be a problem; most 16-year old witches are head over heels for some handsome guy or another. No, of course Ronald Weasley would just have to be my bloody best friend! And one who just realized two years ago that I am of the female gender, and obviously only does and ever will consider me as his bossy, bushy-haired mate with a rather strange fondness for thick old books and Bulgarian Seekers (Viktor, by the way, is engaged to be married in four months, but we still correspond). And, hypothetically speaking, even if he returned my feelings we would never be able to have a normal relationship, seeing as the world is in the midst of a raging, horrible war, one of which the third part of the our "Golden Trio," Harry, is right smack in the middle of. Why me? Why Ron? Why now? Bloody Ronald Weasley.

* * *

"Checkmate!" the object of my affections cried triumphantly, a smirk crossing his handsome features. It was three weeks into summer vacation, and I was lounging in one of the bleak bedrooms of Grimmauld Place, enjoying a spirited game of chesss. I had spent only a mere two weeks at home, when, for my safety (Voldemort was after me too-it was an occupational hazard of being best friends with Harry), Professor Lupin and Tonks had escorted me to the Order headquarters. 

"That's the fifth time he's beaten you today," Ginny pointed out sweetly as I joined her on the twin bed, where she was sprawled out, engrossed in an essay for Charms. (Who says I don't exert a good influence over my friends?)

I absentmindedly glanced at her parchment. "I think you like my brother" was scrawled in bold letters at the bottom.

"I do not!" I shrieked indignantly, jumping to my feet and throwing a nasty glance her way.

"Yes you do," the petite redhead smiled knowingly, inclining her head in the direction of her dear older brother.

Blushing, I hissed, "Virginia Weasley...if you value your life we will continue this discussion later...in private!" Ron was watching all of this with a hint of slight amusement as he lovingly packed away his precious chess pieces.

"What are you talking about?" he asked curiously, picking up a bishop. Honestly. As if this scene had never happened before. At least fifteen times a day Ginny dropped not-so-subtle hints and large winks...even Mrs. Weasley got into the game! Good Lord, the boy doesn't suspect a single thing! They say boys are supposed to have matured mentally by age sixteen. No, not this boy of course. Clueless Ron is completely oblivious to all that happens right in front of his little freckled nose!

"Just girl talk," I said hastily, glaring daggers at my scheming friend, who was now wearing an angelic expression of complete innocence. "You will pay for this, Virginia Weasley" my flashing brown eyes warned her.

_

* * *

__It was the final battle, the duel that would decide the fate of man. Harry calmly stood face-to-face with Lord Voldemort, wand poised at the ready. Ron and I flanked him on either side, our knees shaking so badly it was a wonder that we did not collapse to ground. _

_"So the famous Harry Potter brings two worthless, filthy friends with him," Voldemort sneered, red eyes glittering in the moonlight. "Well, Potter, you will have the pleasure of being responsible for their deaths... but of course, seeing as you too will die tonight, you will feel no guilt._

_"Avada Kedavra!" Harry roared, as a stream of green light issued from his wand. Voldemort had barely enough time to conjure a shield before it reached him._

_"You'll have to do better than that, Potter, before you will be able to defeat the greatest wizard of all time!" he laughed manically, though some earlier traces of cockiness had disappeared. _

_"That would be Dumbledore," Harry snarled, dodging the Killing Curse that the Dark Lord sent his way in retaliation. And so the duel began. Wands flashing faster than the eye could see, Harry and Lord Voldemort dueled for the world of men. Recovering after a hit from the Cruciatus Curse, Harry did not see it coming. The green light was just inches away from his body when Ron suddenly dove out in front of his best friend, protecting him from death and instead taking it for himself. _

_"Ron!" I screamed, tears pouring down my face and clouding my vision. It seemed like the whole world was in slow motion as his lean body fell to the ground, hitting the earth with a loud thump. There was an expression of pure terror on his handsome face, as he lay there, unmoving...dead. _

_"NOOOOOOOOO!" Harry howled, cradling Ron's head in his hands. Suddenly, such fury, rage, and passion over took him and, rising to his feet he aimed his wand directly at Voldemort...but, unfortunately the Dark Lord had used the distraction to his advantage, and neither Harry nor I had any chance as he simultaneously killed us._

* * *

I woke up, my short blue nightgown plastered to my slender body with sweat, sobbing uncontrollably. _'Ron!' _I thought desperately. '_I have to see if Ron's all right!'_

I stumbled out of the dark room, careful not to wake Ginny, and snuck to the next bedroom. "Ron?" I whispered timidly, slowly pushing the door open. I winced as it let out a large creak. It would be just my luck for Ron's Mum to decide to walk past his bedroom at that very moment and see me trying to gain entrance! I froze as I fought back a scream at the sight that greeted my eyes. His bed was empty. Sheets thrown back haphazardly, his pale blue t-shirt he'd been wearing earlier that day crumpled in a ball...this could only mean one thing. '_For goodness sakes, Hermione, think logically!'_ I chided myself sternly, rolling my eyes at the wild conclusions my mind had immediately jumped to. There was no way Voldemort could have kidnapped Ron, even in the dead of night, not with the headquarters protected by Professor Dumbledore himself!

Backing out of his bedroom, I padded cautiously down the hallway, breaking into a sprint as I reached the cold steps. Living room. He had to be in the living room. No one in their right minds would venture into the dusty, pitch-black kitchen with God-knows-what lurking in the corners (such as evil little house-elves even I feel no sympathy for the bloody Kreacher any more) at 2:00 in the morning! And, so it was there I found my love, clad only in a pair of too-short red pajama bottoms and...wait...no shirt? Ron sleeps without a shirt on? My eyes were drawn magnetically to his rather –er nice chest...that Quidditch training had given him some darn good abs and muscles! '_No naughty thoughts Hermione,'_ I firmly reminded myself. '_You are rushing to your knight in shining armor in your time of distress to receive comfort, not for romantic intentions!' _"Ron," I said softly, announcing my presence as I gracefully took a seat beside him on the worn brown couch.

"Hermione." he shifted closer to me, invoking a nervous fluttering in my heart. However, just hearing him murmur my name had released the dam on my unshed tears and brought memories of my horrible nightmare flashing before my eyes.

"Hermione, what's wrong?" he asked worriedly, hesitantly wiping my tears away as they poured out of my eyes, leaving my skin tingling in his wake.

"I—I had the wor-st dre-am," I sobbed, burying my head into his solid chest. "You-dead! And Harry-Harry dead too!" Even in my state of anguish I noticed the feeling of dizziness I was experiencing being so close to Ron, and the furious beating of my heart. '_This is rather nice,'_ a voice in my head snickered.

Ron put an arm around me and wrapped me in a tight hug. "Hermione, I'm alive. Harry's still alive. You're alive. It was just a dream. Nothing more than a terrible dream."

With my ever-so attractive puffy eyes and tear-stained face, looking up at him I cried, "But it will happen someday! Lord Voldemort will kill Harry...and us!"

"Hermione," Ron began seriously, now playing with one of my springy brown curls, "No one knows what will happen a year from now, or even tomorrow. The only hope we have to cling onto is that someday, somehow, the world will be rid of this evil, and we will be able to live without fear, without sadness, without anxiety. For now, we just have to stick close to those...whom we love," his eyes lingered on my brown ones for a few seconds after those last words. My heart literally skipped a beat, and I shivered.

"Miss Granger, are you cold?" Ron said sweetly, a lazy grin crossing his face. I managed to giggle, well aware that I was practically sitting in his lap, and any movement I made was sure to be felt by him. Suddenly the world didn't seem so terrible and hopeless any longer...that and the fact that I was snuggled up in a quite intimate position with my best friend (and crush!) and...and Harry was coming tomorrow! "I was deeply moved by your poetic words of wisdom," I said cheekily, brushing my lips over his cheek before I realized what I was doing. "Er—sorry," I muttered, a bright red blush surely rising on my face. "I—I actually rather enjoyed that," Ron whispered, the tips of his ear turning red.

"Yes...how many times do you have a beautiful, intelligent young woman like me sitting in your lap and kissing your cheek?" I laughed, running my fingers. through his silky locks of red like I'd been tempted to many times before. Shoot. Those words did not just leave my big mouth! Take me now, death! Sassy Hermione!

I hurriedly drew back, but Ron held me by a slender wrist, pulling me closer to him. "Please continue," he said in a rather shy voice, a blush heating up his face, with a daring that probably even surprised himself. "I rather like having a beautiful, intelligent young woman like you sitting in my lap and playing with my hair!"

This had to be a dream...but whether it was or not, I was going to enjoy it for all it was worth!


	2. Sistabonding Time in the Water Closet

**A/N: Thank you to all my great reviewers, especially those of you who noticed and corrected me on Ginny's real name! Wonderful reviews make all the time and effort I put into this story worth it, so thanks to: passionflower24 Christine, Lost Somewhere.Out.There, Ginny PoshSpice, Dwarfed Half Elf, and ronnlover87. Obviously, this is not a one-shot fiction; I plan on carrying it on for as many more chapters as inspiration takes me! So please, read, review, and check for updates! God Bless You!**

I eloquently woke up, stretching my arms dramatically, blearily blinking the windows to my soul open. An unexpected sight blocked my vision significantly; a shock of red hair. Wait, red hair? What was Ron doing...?

Then all the memories came rushing back to me: the terrible nightmare...finding Ron in the living room...sobbing in his chest...sitting on his lap...playing with his luscious hair...Ronald Weasley acting the most affectionate and daring in the six years I'd known him...my large, chatty mouth unable to be controlled...But as it all sunk in, so did the harsh reality: nothing really had happened; he didn't profess his undying love for me, nor did we share a sweet, lingering kiss.

"Morning, 'Mione," Ron yawned widely.

"Good morning, Ronald!" I said brightly, purposely using his despised birth name. The objects of my thoughts let out a loudly, raspy cough in response.

"Ronald, whatever is the matter? Are you ill?" I adopted my "Motherly-Hermione" attitude and rubbed his bare back soothingly. Immediately tensing at my touch (wicked smile!), the lanky redhead snickered, "I believe I was just attacked by a vicious hairball of yours."

Now, I definitely took more than a little bit of offense at his teasing remark. Yes, I do admit that my hair undeniably consists of millions of frizzy, brown corkscrew curls, which each possess a mind of their own, but HONESTLY! Over the years I have tamed my rebellious mass down quite a bit; it doesn't nearly have as much excessive volume and bushiness as it did on the fateful meeting on the train, was that six years ago? Really, that bloke should know better by now not to insult my hair at 7:00 in the morning, especially while I am suffering from PMS! Although, on the other hand, since my monthly cycle is not a normal topic of conversation between my male friends and I, I would frankly be scared if he knew I was currently experiencing -er- a visitor.

Reluctantly easing myself off the couch (and his comfortable lap) In a quavery voice (Oscars, here I come!) I pouted, "But just last night you said I was beautiful, Mr. Weasley. And now, this?" I let the perfect amount of hurt and disgust enter my voice as I defiantly folded my arms over my 34AA chest.

Following my lead, Ron too rose from the couch, and, mimicking my stance, locked gazes with me from his height of six feet two inches (please do not ask how I know that). "Hermione," he began seriously, flashing that lopsided grin that very quickly reduced my knees to nothing but jelly, "You are beautiful. Both inside and out. You are not like all the other girls...you are not superficial. You don't wear makeup...you aren't obsessed with fashion...you don't constantly gossip and giggle over which guys are hot are which are not (what you don't know would kill you, Ron!)...you have a true, natural, wonderful sort of beauty. You're loyal...honest...trustworthy...kind...intelligent..." (I noticed the tips of his ears were turning an adorable shade of red) "And, frankly, I consider myself bloody lucky to be your best friend."

I, Hermione Granger, am one hundred percent sure that no one-not even Ron, with his infamous tendency to blush profusely-could challenge the shade of red that stained my cheeks at his sweet words. "Really?" I squeaked, as I impulsively gave him a hug. Without thinking, I brushed my lips against his warm cheek and whispered, "That's the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me." '_Let alone the object of my affections_,' I finished silently. Bloody. I sound like one of those love-struck girls in those sappy romances Parvati and Lavender are always reading. "And, Mr. Weasley," I continued, smirking slightly at the identical blush he was sporting, "I don't know what I ever did to deserve such wonderful friends as you- and Harry," I added as almost an afterthought. "Now, for goodness sakes get some clothes on!"

"You don't like what you see?" Ron asked slyly.

Poking him in the ribcage, I played along. "Playing Keeper has really done wonders for your physique...but I'm afraid it's a sight I do not wish to force upon the other inhabitants of the house at this ungodly hour."

Heading towards the staircase in all his bare-chested glory, Ron abruptly turned around and broke into a fit of laughter. Sputtering, he managed to gasp, "You've got a heck of a lot of drool caked on the left side of your mouth...about right there," he pointed. I refused to give him the dignity of a reply. Instead, I stalked towards the bathroom. Of course, it would just happen to be occupied by none other than Ginevra Weasley. I could hear the -er- angelic strains of her voice, singing some pop song WAY off-key, even through the thick wooden door. Furiously pounding on the door, I hissed, "Ginny Weasley...you have thirty seconds before I will break down this door and reveal you in all your bed-headed glory. My 15-year old friend, however, opened the door halfway through my threat and pleaded, "Ten more minutes!"

Then it dawned on me...Harry was coming today. Grinning evilly to myself, I yelled to the now-closed door, "Just because Harry's arriving this afternoon does not mean that you are allowed to monopolize the bathroom and spend an exorbitant amount of time on your beauty routine!"

"I am not," the muffled-voice of Ginny informed me frostily, "Trying to impress Harry Potter."

"Then I do not have any romantic intentions towards your brother," I said without thinking. Dangnammit! Seems like that was happening an awful lot lately.

Once again, the door flew open as Ginny yanked me into the small bathroom. "Did you just admit that you like Ron?" she asked breathlessly. I squirmed from my perch on the closed-toilet seat and dodged the question. "Only if you still feel traces of your childhood crush for a certain raven-haired, bespectacled boy with a lightning-shaped scar."

"Ha! Then you do!" the petite redheaded cried triumphantly, not realizing the full implication of her words.

"And so do you," I said accusingly, not wanting to be the only one revealing my deepest, darkest secret I had planned on taking to the grave with me. She sat on the edge of the bathtub with a dreamy expression on face, brushing her thick, long waves of red. I analyzed my close friend with a hint of jealously. She really needed no extra time in the bathroom...Ginny was one of those people blessed with 24-hour exotic beauty. With her flaming red hair, sparkling brown eyes, and a significantly more noticeable figure than mine, she would never have a problem finding a date for Hogsmeade weekends. Just a quick swipe of a brush and a dab of lip-gloss and she was ready to woo the wizards of Hogwarts. Luckily, however, Ginny was one of those rare people who are ignorant of and modest about their looks and do not use them to their advantage.

"He likes you," Ginny said simply, now painting her toenails a vivid pink. My heart literally stopped at those three little words, and I nearly toppled from the commode. "He what?" I breathed.

Rolling her eyes, Ginny matter-of-factly said, "Hermione, we've been through this so many times. That was true. However, I'd always brushed her conclusions off, faking a laugh and scoffing, "He obviously doesn't like me that way! How ridiculous!"

"Whatever am I going to do?" I wailed dramatically, jumping about ten feet in the air when I threw up my hands in despair and accidentally flushed the toilet in the process.

"I fail to see what your dilemma is," Ginny informed me rather crossly, wiggling her toes in the air so they would dry faster. "The object of my affections only thinks of me as his best mate's little sister...and nothing more. His godfather has just been murdered, and, to top it off, the Darkest Wizard in a century and his followers want him dead...and nothing will stop them."

"Except for Dumbledore," I pointed out logically.

"Care to trade places with me?" she asked glumly.

"Not particularly." I teased. "As attractive as Harry may be, I prefer my men to be tall, strong-yet-gentle knights in shining armor with wonderful red hair, dancing blue eyes, and a strong dislike towards a certain International Quidditch player." (Oooooo I love making Ron jealous with my letters to Viktor!) As if on cue, the object of my thoughts chose that exact moment to burst into the bathroom.

"Ronald!" I scolded, "How did you know that one of us wasn't actually using the facilities?"

"I took the risk." he smirked, leaning against the doorjamb. "Anyways, I could hear the giggling and chatter of you dear ladies for miles away. And, a few names used quite often," he lowered his voice as if divulging a terrible secret. "I have concluded that one of you has a rather large crush on our favorite Boy-Who-Lived..." The blood ran cold in my veins. Just how much did that git of a snoop hear? Especially about my whole spiel on what kind of men I prefer! Catching the identical horrified expressions on our two faces, he chuckled and said quite smugly, "I knew all along, Gin, that you liked Harry. I'm really not as clueless as many believe." I beg the differ.

Letting out a huge sigh of relief (none came from my left side; Ginny was obviously more than a tad bit worried about what her scheming older brother would do with this newest bit of information), I said cheerfully, "Well, that certainly clears things up! Ron, you won't breathe a word of this to anyone- especially _HARRY_!"

"I won't?" he challenged, taking a step closer. "You won't," I said a little-less confidently, seeing as he was now about six inches away from me.

"And why wouldn't I?" he smiled, absentmindedly ruffling his hair. "Because it would be a great personal loss to you-and your grades- to lose me as your best friend," I informed him sweetly. As those big baby-blue eyes widened, I knew I'd struck a blow where it would hurt.

"Deal," he said dejectedly, shaking my hand to seal the pact. It wasn't until we were both about to begin eating (or in Ron's case, inhaling) a delicious breakfast of French toast and bacon five minutes later that I realized a slight problem: we were still holding hands! "Er Ron," I started awkwardly, not wishing to bring much attention to the situation, "I'm experiencing a bit of difficulty dining this morning, for I normally hold my fork with my right hand, which would currently be taking residence in your left hand."

"Sorry," he mumbled, quickly dropping my hand and bending over his steaming plate to hide the color rising on his face. Mrs. Weasley, waving her hand sleepily at the stove to speed up the frying bacon, glanced over and broke out into a rare, genuine smile. These days, there was little cheer among the members of the Order; Mrs. Weasley most of all. Five of her children (Fred and George had joined, much to her protest, the day they had officially "graduated" from Hogwarts (though they were not present at the graduation ceremony), and Percy, three days after the Ministry finally believed that Lord Voldemort had risen again) participated actively in the Order of the Phoenix, as did her husband. Her two youngest children, being close friends of Harry, were constantly in serious danger from unfriendly wizards (Voldemort and his minions). I quickly felt a deep rush of sympathy and gratitude for this kind, good-natured woman who carried the weight of the world on her shoulders, but still found the time to be an excellent mother to her children- and Harry and I.

"Wlkjal afd fkljl jpliou?" Ron mumbled through a mouth of crisp bacon.

"Manners, Ronald," I reprimanded. "Would you please ever-so kindly swallow the contents of your mouth and then speak?"

"I said what are we doing today?" he glared.

"Preparing for Harry's arrival," Ginny waltzed in, fresh from a shower, her glossy red hair drying in soft waves.

"I'd say you are," Ron snickered, earning him a dirty look from all three women in the room.

"Well, I was thinking we could tackle the attic," Mrs. Weasley began, joining us at the table with her meager portion of food.

"Anything but cleaning!" Ron grumbled, reaching for the syrup.

"As I was saying," his Mum continued, "I do think we all deserve a break...you three can work on your summer assignments instead!"

"That's just a bad!" Ron groaned in disappointment, obviously believing that he got the raw end of the deal.

"We can start the three-foot long essay Snape assigned us on antidotes!" I clapped my hands excitedly, accidentally knocking my glass of milk over

The object of my affections stared at me as though I was a mutant, three headed neon green alien from outer space. "You actually enjoy homework." he said weakly, grabbing a napkin to help me sop up the milky mess.

"Yes, I certainly do!" I said a bit defensively.

"Women," he muttered, shaking his head. "I'll never be able to figure them out."

Ever-so true, my dear Mr. Weasley...you obviously haven't figured me out yet, or else you would've snogged me senseless (not saying I would put up any fight)!

**Coming Up: Our favorite raven-haired, bespectacled wizard comes to 12 Grimmauld Place, and Hermione returns with her sharp, witty humor and love for a certain redhead! Harry's arrival brings more than a hint of sadness and despair to the headquarters, but the antics of Fred and George, who are there for a top-secret meeting, and the blossoming romance between Ron and Hermione (and perhaps Harry and Ginny: who knows?) brighten the spirits of all.**


	3. Truth or Dare!

**A/N:** **Sorry this chapter took so long to be uploaded. I have been basically eating, breathing, and sleeping musical for the past week, but, thank goodness, our final performance was last night! I also have had a major writer's block for the past two weeks, but finally some inspiration is hitting me and I can crank out the chapters. Updates will come a lot quicker, I promise, so please don't give up on this story! I apologize that this chapter is serious and a bit depressing at times, but, honestly, after what happened at the Department of Mysteries life isn't all fun and games. However, I will try to keep it light, which won't be too hard considering the characters I am working with!**

"Bloody h, Hermione," Ron grunted as he lugged my school bag into the bedroom. "What do you have in here...bricks?"

"Six books!" I said airily. He shook his head.

"Mental, that one," he confided in an undertone to Percy (who wasn't due at the Ministry until later that afternoon), who was passing by the room on his sleepy trudge to the table.

"Ronald," he admonished with a superior air, "You ought to follow Hermione's example. She has high aspirations and an excellent work ethic- not to mention her priorities are properly sorted. She will succeed in life." A boy -er- man after my own heart. Besides that little escapade where he shunned his own family and ran away last year, I have always liked Percy, even with his stern, no-nonsense, (and no-fun) attitude, and obsession with perfection.

Smiling, I chirped, "Thanks Perce!" My smile only grew wider as I caught sight of the bleary-eyed Weasley sporting a small, genuine grin of his own. Winking, he continued on the long, dangerous trek to the kitchen; perilous because...

"Filth! Scum! By-products of dirt and vileness! Half breeds..." Mrs. Black's enraged screams reverberated throughout the old house. There was a loud crack as Fred and George suddenly materialized about a centimeter from Percy's sleepy blue eyes.

"Percy Ignatius Weasley, how corking to see you, old chap!" Fred clapped a hand hard on his shoulder.

"Amusing. Now if you'll excuse me boys, I have business to attend to in the kitchen..." Percy went on rather testily, attempting to edge his way past his scheming brothers, who wore identical wicked smiles.

"What a coincidence!" George feigned shock. "We're just about to head that way too. We'll escort you to breakfast!" They linked arms with the now disgruntled Percy and merrily skipped down the hall. "Mum!" I heard the twins cry. "Wonderful to see you, woman!"

"And you, boys," a pleased Mrs. Weasley said affectionately, as (by the sounds of disgust her dear sons were making) she kissed their cheeks.

"Gits." Ronald mumbled a bit resentfully. "They skip out of Hogwarts, breaking a thousand rules in the process and insulting a Ministry official (I immediately began seeing red at the mere mention of that you-know-whatProfessor Umbridge) and start a joke shop- and Mum doesn't even bat an eyelash! If I even put a toenail out of line..."

"Ron," I interrupted gently, "You know darn well that your Mum-and the rest of the Order-have much more serious things on their minds."

"You're right, Hermione- as usual," Ron sighed, shoulders slumped dejectedly.

"And that's why you like me so much." I playfully rumpled his fiery red hair.

"Yes...that's why I like you so much," he echoed dazedly, tentatively brushing a rebellious curl out of my eyes. A blush was rising on my face as he took a step closer. Then another. Only four inches now separated his toned body and my slender figure...

* * *

"Harry, oh Harry!" I cried as my other best mate wearily walked into the Most Noble and Ancient House of Black, escorted by nearly half of the Order of the Phoenix. I threw myself into his arms and hugged him fiercely. 

"Lo, Hermione," Harry acknowledged me, cracking a weak grin as he awkwardly patted me on the back and tried not to ingest any of my hair.

An impatient 'humph' came from my right side as I slowly released the Boy-Who-Lived. In two long strides, Ron was across the room and embracing Harry like a brother. "It's great to see you, mate," he said, grinning from ear to ear.

I studied Harry critically as Mrs. Weasley took her turn to squeeze the breathe out of the poor boy. He looked extremely handsome-as usual. His jet-black hair lay in that trademark unkempt way, giving him that adorable air. Years of heavy Quidditch training were obvious in his lean, muscular frame, although he had slightly gone to seed as a result of not playing the sport for nearly a year. Those piercing emerald eyes...truth be told, Harry James Potter was-there was no other word for it- SEXY. However, taking a closer glance, I realized those startlingly green eyes lacked the usual sparkle, the glimmer, the _happiness._ Instead, they were dull, lifeless sockets, brimming with guilt, anger, and enormous grief and unshed tears.

'_Poor Harry,'_ I thought, literally sobbing inside when I was reminded of how much he'd been through in the past few years-especially in the past two months. He had to be the strongest, most courageous wizard to ever walk the planet. Watching Cedric die at the end of our fourth year, then the closest thing he had left to a father, Sirius, at the Department of Mysteries a few months ago...that was nothing, however, compared to what Harry had finally revealed to us the last day of our fifth year. About the prophecy. How the fate of the whole Wizarding World rested on a sixteen-year old's shoulders. How he would either have to be a murderer or be murdered himself. How it would come down to that final duel to decide whether the world of man would survive. How everything depended on him. How he was now, like the rest of us, forced to put up a brave façade to hide the terror swelling within him. How he had to pretend that nothing was wrong, that we were just three normal teenagers, experiencing the "best" years of our lives. How there was good chance that he wouldn't live to see his seventeenth birthday-and neither would we.

My depressing musings luckily were stopped as I watched Ginny tentatively wrap her arms around Harry. Blimey- was that a blush I spied on the raven-haired young man's face? I shared a secret look with Mrs. Weasley, who smiled sadly. Though Harry was her seventh son, having a blossoming relationship with her youngest daughter during this horrible war would only deepen the grief if the battle were to turn ill. Then again, who was to deny anyone happiness in this time of uncertainty a time when life itself became a game of survival?

* * *

"Evening, Potter, Weasley, Granger," Severus Snape said stiffly as he strode into headquarters four hours later, about fifteen minutes early for the top-secret Order meeting scheduled for that night. 

"Hello, Professor Snape," I greeted my least favorite teacher dully while trying to edge my way away from him as quickly as possible without being rude.

"Come on, Ron!" I grabbed his hand and Harry's shirtsleeve and started pulling them out of the living room. "We have to finish that essay on antidotes!"

"It really was a pleasure speaking to you, Professor," Ron snickered as Snapes's black eyes flashed dangerously.

"Could you please repeat that remark, Mr. Weasley?" he asked silkily, now blocking the doorway and our intended escape route. My grip on Ron's large, warm hand tightened considerably as his face turned a delicate shade of red.

"I wasn't being sarcastic, _sir_!" Ron fumed, the infamous Weasley temper about to be unleashed. "I meant what I said- I rather enjoy speaking to gits such as yourself!"

Instantly, I knew Harry and I knew he had gone too far. However, secretly I was quite impressed that the object of my affections was finally standing up to the prat who found pleasure in making Harry's life a living hell! '_Score one for my sexy Ron!'_ I giggled.

Snape's pallid complexion turned purple with suppressed rage. "Although you may not be at Hogwarts, Weasley, I am still your Potions professor and deserve to be treated with respect," he growled, fingering his wand.

"He speaks the truth, _sir,_" Harry now joined into the argument.

"And you Potter!" Snape whirled around, pointing a long finger about an inch away from Harry's face. "One more word from either of you and I will hex you into oblivion. I may not be able to delve out any nasty punishments now, but let me assure you, when we arrive back at Hogwarts you will both be spending much time in detention for your inappropriate comments and blatant disrespect of me."

"Funny, the way you've turned out, Potter," the spy for the Order continued. "Just like your father and Black...both felt they were superior to the rest of us mere mortals and could do what they pleased with no consequences whatsoever. Look where it got both of them!"

"SHUT UP!" Harry roared, face white with fury. "HOW DARE YOU SPEAK OF SIRIUS OR MY FATHER THAT WAY! IF YOU HAVEN'T NOTICED, YOU'RE DESCRIBING YOUR OWN PITIFUL SELF! YOU'LL MEET THE SAME FATE AS THEM, ALL RIGHT, WHEN VOLDEMORT FINDS OUT THAT YOU'RE A TRAITOR!" Tears streaming down his face, Harry ran out of the room, colliding head on with a white-faced Remus. He simply pushed the last remaining person of his father's closest circle of friends away and stormed to his bedroom. I stood there, mouth wide open in shock...and _awe_.

"Severus, what happened here?" Remus questioned gruffly.

"Why don't you ask your precious Potter?" Snape snarled, tucking his wand back into his pocket. "Now if you'll excuse me, there are matters of great importance I must share at this meeting...unlike some people, I play a pivotal role in the Order. I would hate to be late and have my top-secret information not revealed..." And without a further glance, he stalked past Remus towards the basement kitchen.

"It would be best if you left Harry alone," Remus advised us gently, flashing a sympathetic grin as he too followed Snape to the gathering in the kitchen.

Hmm. That meant Ron and I would be alone for more than two hours! Whatever would we occupy ourselves with?

Over the years, I have learned that with the Weasley clan, that is a dangerous question to even think. Ginny, who had luckily missed the showdown between my two best mates and Snape due to the fact that she was in the loo doing God-knows-what entered and flopped down on the couch.

"Well," I began brightly, as if a cheerful tone of voice would completely erase the events of the past five minutes, "We have two hours before dinner...any ideas?" _'Besides snogging Ron senseless, which really wouldn't be a good idea with his sister also present in the room -she'd be scarred for life,'_ the annoying little voice in my head snickered.

Ginny suddenly got that really _scary_ evil glint in her now dancing brown eyes. "We could play truth or dare," she suggested slyly.

I could smell a rat from a hundred miles away. "We could _not_ play truth or dare," I said loudly. "It's no fun with only three people." (As if that was a legitimate excuse. I was just too scared that she would make Ron kiss me for a dare, and he would refuse because I am simply too repulsive. And, by the way, earlier in the day when we were only a mere few inches apart? George and Fred chose the perfect moment to practically Apparate on my chest, thus breaking any –er- romantic mood that had settled over us two hormone-crazed teenagers).

"Make that five," came the glum voice of Fred (or was that George?) as the twins sauntered in, for once choosing to walk the huge distance of about 1/100 of a mile instead of Apparating. "Mum suddenly refused to let us attend today's meeting even though we're officially members. And to think we let that senseless boy (the twin's best mate, Lee Jordan) run the shop today in our absence so we could be here tonight! Supposedly Snape's giving a super top-secret reportthat our ears are not special enough to hear."

"Anyways," George continued, rubbing his hands together, "we'll make the best of this evening. The night's still young...did I hear a mention of a game of truth or dare?"

"You certainly did not," I said hastily, knowing fully well that by adding Fred and George into the mix, things would only get worse for me.

Completely ignoring me, like they usually did, Fred punched Ginny on the arm and whispered dramatically, "Truth or dare, Gin?"

"Truth," his sister sighed, resigning herself to the fact that this was definitely going to be an embarrassing question of some sort.

"Do you like Harry?" the twins bluntly asked in perfect unison.

"Well, of course I do!" Ginny said quickly, blushing to the roots of her fiery red hair. "He's a good friend- and a great guy. He's the nice brother I never had!"

Pretending to be deeply offended, Fred clutched his chest. "That wounded me greatly, Gin. However, I believe you have not answered the question completely. Everyone sitting in this room likes Harry _that_ way...I'm talking about in a non-platonic way...in a romantic way."

Pursing her lips, the young woman being questioned defiantly folded her arms across her slightly more ample chest than mine (I'd say a 36 B). "And what if I choose not to answer the question?"

"Then you are choosing the consequences...terrible consequences that Fred and I have yet to decide on," George said smugly.

Throwing her hands up in defeat, Ginny softly admitted, "Fine! My childhood crush on the Boy-Who-Lived has blossomed into a full-fledged love. Happy?"

"Not exactly," Fred said weakly, eyes trained on the door. Slowly turning around, Ginny found herself face to face with none other Harry Potter.

"You two are dead meat," I whispered, settling back against Ron's muscular legs and preparing myself for what I was sure would be a highly amusing situation.


	4. Snogging Ron?

**A/N: Thanks to all my loyal reviewers! I love yourwonderful compliments, and they inspire me to continue writing at my very best (and quickest!). LadySimone123 (you go, girl!), GinnyPoshSpice, kittykatlucky13, Dwarfed Half Elf, MysteryALASKA, EponineWeasley, suckr4romance81789, Lipgloss, Phillyactress, Moonhawkpebbly, Alli-Baby, scubagirl, violet snicket, Stella Blu, TheDaughterofKings, Roncrazychic, ronlover87, aishteru, and xox breezy- I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH! Thank you for such great reviews on the last two chapters, and I apologize for not having individual responses for each of you-there's too many. Anyways, enough of my ramblings. As usual, read, review, and above all else, ENJOY! Oh-I offer a sincere apology for sometimes making my characters do things a bit OOC (honest constructive criticism welcomed on this aspect). **

"Er, hello," Harry said awkwardly, puffy eyes and tearstained cheeks still evident. Folding his muscular arms, a faint smile gracing his face, he said calmly, "I assume I've walked into the middle of something."

"You got that right," a mortified Ginny managed to squeak from her refuge behind the worn black leather couch.

"Does anyone care to enlighten me?"

Shaken a bit by his, calm, cool, and collected demeanor, considering what had enfolded about fifteen minutes ago between him and a certain Potions Master, I stuttered, "We were just playing a game of truth or dare." '_Either Harry's an excellent actor or he went temporarily deaf during Ginny's confession,' _I thought, bewildered.

"Well, may I join in?" he raised an eyebrow, assuming the answer and plopped down cross-legged on the floor. Ginny, who had finally worked up the nerve to crawl out from behind the couch (God knows how she fit there, seeing as she definitely possesses more curves than I) and I shared a quick, confused glance. What on earth had gotten into Harry? Then realization hit me like the attack of flatulence one experiences after eating too many servings of pork 'n' beans. '_Harry's being a gentleman,'_ I smiled with pride. _"He's pretending that this extremely humiliating situation never occurred.' _Good ol' Harry. The Boy-Who-Lived was responsible for saving the lives of the Twins-Who-Lived-And-Were-About-To-Be-Murdered-By-Furious-Sister. I almost hoped Ginny would still get her hands on them, however- I count myself very fortunate not to have ever been on the receiving end of one of her Bat-Bogey hexes. You have simply never seen a real temper before until you have watched the towering inferno of Ginevra Weasley in all of her explosive glory. '_Mount Ginny,'_ I snickered behind a fist. My unladylike snickers unfortunately turned some unwanted attention onto a certain bookish know-it-all cherishing the feel of a certain adorable redhead's strong calve muscles against her back.

"Hermione," George began casually, as his wand was immediately hovering less than two centimeters away from my eyeballs, "Truth or dare?" The evil glint in his dancing blue eyes was daring me to challenge him by stating, "Neither!"

Phft. As if that should have even been addressed as a question. Being held at wand point by a crazy jokester did not leave much room for negotiation on my part. I mentally weighed my options. Dare? Having to snog Ron for ten minutes? Heck yes. Having to share my first kiss in front of my best mate, the two largest gossipers on Diagon Alley, and a chatty Ginevra Weasley? Heck no. As appetizing as devouring Ron's lips whole sounded about right now (naughty thoughts!)¸ I was totally not in the mood for rejection and complete mortification when he would draw back in disgust five seconds into the kiss. It would have to be truth. Maybe I would have a rare stroke of luck and he would ask a question completely unrelated to my love life (or lack thereof). Maybe Professor Snape would also drop down on his knees and proclaim his passionate love for me, and hungrily press his mouth against mine. Fat chance. (At least, I would hope so for the latter- although Severus does have rather nice lips, when they're not twisted up in that cruel little smile of his-however, this good characteristic of him is often overshadowed by his minor character flaws, such as being a major git in the buttocks 24/7. He is one prat I wouldn't mind stuffing down Moaning Myrtle's toilet- provided, of course, that someone had deposited something rather smelly and nasty just minutes before).

"Truth," I sighed dramatically, awaiting the inevitable words and my painful death.

"Do you like our Ronniekins?"

Do I like Ron? Blimey, I love the bloke. However, I wasn't about to blurt that out. I decided to pursue the "Ginny course-of-action."

"Of course I do," I said indignantly. "Ron's a wonderful guy- and one of my best mates!"

Fred let out a highly exasperated sigh and shared a frustrated look with George that clearly meant "Women."

"Not in a platonic way," he cackled. "You, Hermione, the smartest witch at Hogwarts, know exactly what I'm getting at."

Noticing the sea of smirking faces surrounding me, I barely managed to stutter, "I...I plead the fifth." The multiple blank faces that followed my desperate plea made me remember that I was the only one in the room who actually knew or cared about the US Constitution. "Actually, I change to dare," slipped out of my mouth. Fudge nut.

"Fine." George snickered, failing to keep a straight face. "Then snog Ron for five minutes."

Now this would have definitely been the proper place for me to say a handful of very naughty words forbidden by my parents. However, I did have a reputation to withhold: Hermione Granger never, ever swears. So, I did the only thing a mature, confident young witch such as myself would do in a situation like this: turn the brightest red imaginable and get the heck out of there. Only problem was, the door was locked.

"What the" I growled, ferociously kicking the magically sealed door in hopes that my pathetic attempts would somehow break the door open. Instead, I created some long scratches on the ornate wooden door that would make Sirius's old Mum have a conniption. Taking a very deep breath before I exploded, I whirled around to find that even my gal Ginny, my sole confidante (I mean, seriously, how do you talk to guys about tampons?), the one person entrusted with my deepest, dirtiest secret which wasn't going to remain a secret for much longer, was _laughing_. How immature. How _juvenile_. Then again, I had chortled at her misfortune before...Logically, it was_ only fair_.

"Boys," I said my voice dripping with sweetness. "Open the door-NOW!"

"Not until you kiss Ron!" Fred, George, and Ginny reminded me in unison.

Rolling my eyes quite dramatically, knowing there was no way out of this (literally) I sauntered over to Ron's perch on the couch.

"You don't have to do this, you know?" Ron barely managed to whisper in my ear as I pulled him up off the couch. And if I thought my face was red- boy, I had nothing on Ron! The infamous Weasley blush extended from the tips of his ears to the bottom of his neck in a fire-engine shade. '_This is it,'_ I thought anxiously as I tentatively wrapped my arms around his neck. Butterflies started furiously beating their delicate wings in my stomach as he tenderly ran a finger over one of my cheeks. Heart pounding so loudly I am sure the object of my affections could hear it, seeing as his body was almost pressed up against mine, I noticed Ron was visibly shaking. The poor guy was super-nervous. I wasn't much better, though- nearly lightheaded from such close proximity to the about-to-be the object of my kisses. Only in my wonderful daydreams did I ever imagine this happening- Ron and me about to snog- however, this current situation lacked one certain thing was always included in my dreams: his proffession of his undying, passionate love for me. '_Good Lord, his mouth is moving towards mine!'_ I gasped as he bent his head down (he kinda had to, unless I wished to snog his chin to death instead of those luscious lips!). I closed my eyes in anticipation, wondering why I wasn't feeling the touch of Ron's lips on mine when it remembered that this was my dare- I had to initiate the kiss. '_This predicament gets better every minute_,' I groaned- well, not really. I could feel his hot, heavy breath as my mouth hovered only centimeters from his...I could also feel a wonderful tingle spreading throughout my whole body as I ran a hand through his silky locks of red and prepared to kiss the man of my dreams. But, as usual, there's never a dull moment in life around the Weasleys, and I reckon Ron and I had been staring one minute too long in each other's eyes (did I mention he has hints of green mixed in with the blue?).

"Alohomora," an irritated voice incantated as the door finally swung open, revealing an irate Percy Weasley. Ron and I immediately jumped apart, as though we had been scorched.

"Not in the Order long enough," he grumbled. "Report too top-secret for your ears."

"Let me guess," Fred said thoughtfully, rubbing his chin.

"You were kicked out of the meeting too!" George finished a bit triumphantly, smirking.

"Obviously," a disgruntled Percy snapped. "However, I, unlike many other immature wizards running around this house, am going to make productive use of my time. Hermione, would you care to come with me? I have a book on Animagi that I believe will be of great interest to you."

Percevial Ignatius Weasley. My hero. "I'd love to," I said with relief, shooting the twins a murderous glance and following the older, much more mature Weasley to the library.

Percy shut the door behind him and sat primly on an ancient blue armchair that gave off puffs of dust at the contact.

"Though you needed saving, Hermione," he coughed.

"I did," I said with gratitude. "Thanks, Perce."

"Any time, Hermione. Any time. Now, would you care to tell me exactly what unfolded concerning my brothers?" The sparkle in his eye indicated he knew more than he was letting on.

"Your dear brothers thought it would be highly amusing for me to admit my feelings about Ron and snog the heck out of him," I said very quickly, blushing.

"Ah. My ears did hear something to that extent through the door- thick as it may be, it does not completely soundproof the room."

"An eavesdropper, Percy? I'd never thought you'd stoop so low."

Pretending to be offended, Percy said, "You really believe that I am always such a moral, upstanding Ministry official? I do sometimes break the rules. Now, share with me your true feelings on Ron- or else I am afraid I will have to hex you. A pity, really- I would much rather prefer trying this particularly nasty spell on ol' Snape.

My mouth dropped open in awe for more than one reason. First off, that Percy- goody-goody, perfect Percy- actually had knew how to eavesdrop. Secondly, for a man who only ever had one girlfriend (Penelope Clearwater, when he was in the seventh year) he sure knew a cauldronful about how love works- I mean, I am not **that **obvious about Ron- am I? Finally, and most impressively, the bloke hated that slimy git of a Potions teacher! Percy is no longer my hero- he's my _idol_!

"Snape? But I thought you worshipped the ground any Hogwarts professor walked on- no matter how prattish they were," I stammered incredulously.

"Frankly, I was a tad bit naïve in my Hogwarts years," Percy answered breezily. "I've learned since then what a complete a Severus is- though he is an excellent spy for the Order," he added grudgingly.

"Well, yes, I do rather fancy your brother," I admitted softly, figuring that if Percy was confiding secrets in me that could very well tarnish his reputation if they leaked out, then I'd have to do the same.

Slipping a companionable, brotherly arm around me he said smugly, "I knew it, Hermione. I can read you like a book. Speaking of books, how's about we browse through those over there?" He pointed to a large, dusty bookshelf overflowing with hundreds of heavy volumes. It was there, in the library, where Harry and Ron found Percy and I two hours later, both submerged in our favorite pastime: reading.

"Meetings over and dinner's ready," Ron said in one breath, the tips of his ears turning red at the sight of yours truly. Heh heh.

I carefully marked my place in "Dark Wizards in the Last Millennium" and slowly rose to my large (size 9) feet.

"Can you move any slower, Mione?" Ron complained, appearing to be nearly keeling over from hunger. Phft. The wizard with the appetite of a Hungarian Horntail. I reckon that bloke eats 10,000 calories a day- and never gains an ounce! Boys have all the luck.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Percy said jovially. "To the kitchen- and nourishment for our weary souls!"

"Mental, that one," Ron confided in an undertone to me. Funny, I could've sworn he said the same thing about me just that very morning...


	5. Hermione and Harry?

**A/N: Does anyone know the best time to post to generate the most reviews? Fridays? Saturdays? Evenings? Afternoons? Not that I'm not receiving enough- 47 reviews total for 4 chapters from WONDERFUL, MAGNIFICENT, EXCELLENT, FANTASTIC readers! To all those who reviewed chapter four, a huge, deliciouschocolate chip cookie! (Sry the folowing is abit long- please don't complain about it and get my story removed!)**

**LadySimone123-** Yes, I am waiting for the perfect moment for everyone's favorite witch and wizard to share their first kiss (I also want to continue writing this fiction for a long time, and the chapter in which they finally snog would have to be one of the last, which would sadden me greatly since I've had such a blast writing this story!). As for shoe sizes? It's a size nine in England (though I didn't plan that, it would make her feet even smaller- size 7-by our American standards!). Love ya lots, "Miss S"- one of my good friends!  
**Phillyactress-** I agree one hundred percent- Hermione is way OOC at times- but there is an reason for my madness- in the actual book series, though JK Rowling is an excellent, talented writer, all we see of 'Mione is one side- a bookish, clever, bushy-haired witch. However, impressions can be misleading- we never learn her thoughts or her other possible "face." Almost everyone can have two different personalities perhaps this is Hermione's wild, sassy side. I love believing that she isn't as stuffy and goody-goody (no offense meant at all- she's one of my fave characters and I can totally relate to her bookish, slightly nerd, know-it-all personality) as she appears to be sometimes in the books. Thanks to a loyal, encouraging reviewer who provides a bit of excellent constructive criticisim which I desperately need!  
**suckr4romance81789-** Thank you very much; I love endearing compliments! (By the way, I read your profile and have to agree that Ron and Hermione totally belong together (and I'm easily a angered by HHr romances)- Harry and Hermione dating would be INCEST!)  
**TheDaughterOfKings-** I'm happy you like the other side of Hermione and Percy- I strongly believe that somewhere, inside of the two, those "fun" personalities are struggling to break free from their confines in the actual book series! Thanks for the great review! (By the way, an excellent poem, "Smile": All LOTR fans, read and review this beautiful literary work, written by TheDaughterOfKings!)  
**aishteru-** Mmwwhaha! (evil laugh!) Just for that question I will make them never, ever kiss and instead Harry and Hermione will snog! Just kidding, of course. Thanks!  
**I AM EOWYN- **Your stories are very good, too! Thanks for the great compliments- you are an excellent writer! I'm thrilled you found this story to your liking.  
**EponineWeasley-** So am I! The next installment is here, in (ahem) all of its...humorous? glory.  
**Robyn-** So close, yet no kiss! Hermione is all for praising Percy for his great timing- who'd want to share her first kiss with the object of her affections in front of an audience? Penelope (and his siblings) have taught him well in how relationships work- pity he can't find a girl of his own!  
**Alli-Baby-** You gotta luv Percy- their first good snog can't be the result of a dare- it has to be a romantic, sweet moment of tender kisses! Love your story about George/Tonks: Are you going to ever update it? Thank you very much to one of my most loyal reviewers, a gal who has been there since the beginning!  
**LaraPotter- **(Blushing) I don't deserve such great praise!Thanks anyways- you rock! I'm happy you think so highly of my story!  
**scubagurl-** An excellent suggestion, but I'm trying to keep the whole story from just one point of view- Miss Granger. Thanks for pointing this out, though!  
**MysteryALASKA-** I'm hurrying...I'm hurrying! I cranked this out as quickly as possible- hope you enjoy it and good luck with the new story you posted today- I'm going to read it right after I load this chapter!  
**NeVeRmInD2-** Flair Verona- you don't know how much a sweet review like this means to me! Two extra-large cookies to you- glad you're enjoying this story!

* * *

My jaw dropped at the enormous amount of people standing in a large knot that came into view as I struggled to keep up the fast pace Ron and Harry set walking – perhaps sprinting in their case- down the stairs. Blimey, you would think those two never were fed in their life! 

"Membership has really grown," I whispered happily to Ron, noticing more than a few unfamiliar faces and some new but recognizable. Nearly half the Hogwarts staff was in the secret organization - Flitwick, Sprout, Hooch, Sinistra- even the stern librarian, Madame Pince- had joined.

"Pork roast," Ron drooled almost deliriously.

"Almost there, Ronald. Almost there," I patted his arm soothingly as a few greetings came our way as we passed the group of chatting witches and wizards.

"Hello Miss Granger, Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, and Mr. Weasley," Professor Flitwick acknowledged us jovially in his high-pitched voice.

"Good evening, professor," I answered for all of us, seeing as certain males in our little traveling party were occupied with thoughts of other matters.

By the time the interminable, exhausting journey to the kitchen was finished, Harry and I were supporting Ron on either side.

"Ronald dear, are you all right?" his Mum asked distractedly, attempting to silence a loudly whistling pot of boiling water, remove the pork roast from the oven (A/N: Who says witches can't use stoves?), and yank the currently burning vat of mashed potatoes off of the burner all at the same time.

"Here, Molly. I'll lend you a hand." Professor McGonagall, my favorite teacher at Hogwarts suddenly materialized and, pointing her wand at the oven, shot the pork roast onto the table in three seconds flat, almost colliding it smack into Snape, who, I guessed with distaste, was actually staying for dinner for once- no matter that about half the occupants of the room would consider killing him with their bare hands even before what happened earlier the evening!

"Bloody good bit of magic," Fred beamed as Snape threw his colleague a nasty glare.

"Thank you, Mr. Weasley," McGonagall said briskly, flashing him a rare grin. I looked around the crowded table three minutes later with great satisfaction. Lupin, Tonks, Mundungus, McGonagall, (unfortunately) Snape, the whole Weasley gang (including a frazzled Mr. Weasley), and Harry were all helping themselves from the myriad of plates covering the table as far as the hungry eye could see. As usual, the far end of the table was full of the typical immaturity as Fred and George roared with laughter at Dung's heroic deeds of swindling, cheating, and stealing. One key figure normally joining in one the fun was clearly missing, however. Sirius. Reluctantly, Harry had permitted the Order to continue using the house, though his godfather's death was obviously beyond devastating to him. Heck, it hit all of us hard- I'd grown to really like the lighthearted, mischievous personality of Sirius in the short time I'd known him- but Harry the worst of all, as his last close link to his parents-save Remus- was gone. Forever. He was doing a bloody good job of wearing a mask of normalcy, fortunately. I watched as he half-heartedly joined in the animated discussion flowing between Ron, Mr. Weasley, Bill, and Charlie concerning (what else?) but Quidditch. ("I reckon Denmark has a fair shot this year...bloody shame though, what happened to Bulgaria! Creamed, 300 to 20. It wasn't their fault, really, Krum was knocked off his broom in the first five minutes and couldn't finish the game. Poor chap, had to stay in St. Mungo's for two weeks ..."). (I noticed a look of grim satisfaction on Ron's face at this news). Across from me, Tonks and Ginny were talking hairstyles and hair potions (God knows I could use an excessive amount of the latter) while Mrs. Weasley gazed worriedly off into space. ("There is one that completely straightens your hair, but I wouldn't advise using it, Ginny, because your waves are much too pretty."). I caught snippets of Percy and Lupin's debate about trolls ("Nasty little buggers, they are- the usual Stunning spell doesn't even touch them."). Professor Snape was staring sullen-faced at his heaping plate (quite surprising, really, his huge appetite- I thought bats only dined on blood and insects!), as if daring it to call him a slimy git. I debated between fixing my eyes on Ron or joining in the Quidditch talk with my secret knowledge of what really happened to Viktor (he'd written me a letter from the hospital).

"So, Miss Granger, how has your summer been so far?" Professor McGonagall asked from my right, stabbing a potato. Blimey, I had almost forgotten she was there- very quiet, McGonagall can be when she wants- even sadder considering she's the witch I admire most in the world, and is basically my mentor.

"Not bad, considering the circumstances,"I replied nonchalantly, throwing a casual glance the raven- haired, bespectacled wizard's way.

McGonagall is one smart feline. "I understand, Miss Granger," she said sympathetically, all traces of her usual sternness and briskness gone. "My husband, Murdo, has simply been living at the Ministry these days- he's an Auror."

"You have a husband?" I barely managed to stutter, as a wave of total astonishment threatened to throw me from my chair.

She chuckled. "Don't be so shocked, Miss Granger. Most of us working at Hogwarts have spouses- except for Severus," she lowered her voice to a whisper and beckoned for me to lean my head closer. "He chooses to walk the road alone. However, there was one DADA teacher he rather fancied...and young, vivacious witch-"she abruptly broke off as Snape glanced suspiciously in our direction. "Nothing much ever came of it," the older witch finished hastily. "His personality isn't that endearing to most women."

I practically spit out my pumpkin juice at her last words. "You've never spoken a truer word, Professor."

Winking at me, with an unusual mischievous glint in her pale blue eyes, Professor McGonagall said in a low voice, "Has a certain redhead admitted his obvious affections for you?"

This was simply getting to be too much. I mean, really, how much can a sixteen-year old witch handle in one day? First Ginny, then Fred and George, Percy- and now Professor McGonagall!

"Who, Fred?" I played dumb, which never, ever works in my particular case, seeing, as McGonagall knows bloody well that I am (to be blunt and arrogant) one of the cleverest witches Hogwarts has ever seen, and could possibly even challenge her intellect given a few more years. "He's not really my type- a rather lazy and mischievous bloke."

"Ah, Miss Granger, but I do believe you are particular towards one lazy, mischievous redhead- a brother of Fred's, to be specific."

"George?"

"To be young again," Professor McGonagall said almost wistfully, "and in a state of denial..."

"I am not in a state of denial!" I hissed, forgetting just whom I was arguing with. As my hair started to frizz out, as it normally does when I am an irate witch (which explains why my fights with Ron are some of my worst moments, appearance-wise- and the times I am closest to Ron's freckled little face- i.e., screaming about 2 millimeters away from him), I knew a big explosion was coming on- one in which I might accidentally reveal my deepest, dirtiest secret to all the inhabitants of the dinner table.

"Yes you are, dear," Mrs. Weasley piped in quietly, finally finished with her melancholy ponderings and decided to put in her two cents worth.

Dear Lord. Just what I needed. Another witch who was way too smart for her own good.

"Molly, that son of yours, Ronald, is rather ugly, with his gangly frame and that obnoxious red hair," Tonks butted into our conversation, obviously falsely believing that this confession was one I absolutely needed to make _now_ or I would simply die. (I knew what game the older witches were playing, but I still took the bait).

"He is NOT!" I shrieked indignantly, thankfully remembering to lower my voice when everyone suddenly stopped talking, and, quickly turning around in his or her seat, attempted to locate the owner of the very angry voice. I lowered my voice, (unfortunately not soft enough, as I would later learn), and snapped, "I happen to like Ron's locks of red- I think he's rather adorable, gangly frame (which had filled out considerably, but I wasn't about to start discussing his sexy chest and toned body at the dinner table) and all!"

"Then you do fancy him!" Mrs. Weasley said triumphantly, shaking a bit of pepper onto her mashed potatoes. Bloody. These women were just a bad as Parvati and Lavender, with their incessant chatter on the most eligible bachelors at Hogwarts.

"Harry's rather handsome," I smiled wickedly at Ginny, who had a lovely blush slowly creeping up her face. "But there is nothing between us but a bond resembling that shared by a brother and sister!"

Professor McGonagall had just opened her mouth to give what I would expect to be a witty reply when a familiar voice drawled in my ear, "This conversation just keeps on becoming more and more interesting." I shivered as Ron's breath tickled the delicate skin of my ears. I slowly turned around in my seat, dreading to see what would meet my eyes. His partner in crime (Harry, of course) was making little attempt to hide his guffaws as Ron calmly stood there, ears bright red but a slight smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. Just how much had my bloody best mates heard?

"I wonder if this sentence seems familiar to you," Harry snickered. In a horrible imitation of my voice- extremely high-pitched and breathy- he trilled, "I happen to like Ron's locks of red- I think he's rather adorable, gangly frame and all!"

"After hearing Ron's name mentioned," he continued with a small nod from the object of my affections, who seemed to have lost the ability to speak and any earlier courage he had, "We were curious. With a little help from Fred and George, who placed a Silencing Charm on us, we were able to sneak around the table and catch the tail end of quite a statement!"

"Hermione," he said seriously, "I never knew you'd thought that way about me. We've wasted so much time..."

"Harry-" Ron and Ginny said in unison, both looking like they had seen something particularly revolting, such as Pansy and Malfoy snogging. Out the corner of my eye, I caught sight of Ron clenching the back of a chair until his knuckles turned white as he glared daggers at his best mate.

"As I was saying," the-Boy-Who-Lived cleared his throat, inconspicuously winking at me. "I feel the same way!" Pulling me to my feet, he embraced me in his muscular arms. '_This isn't so bad, being enfolded in the arms of one of the sexiest men alive,' _I snickered as I inhaled the scent of the wonderful cologne I'd randomly bought him at Hogsmeade last year.

"Pretend you're enjoying this," Harry whispered, his breath hot on my ear. "I have a plan."

"Well, I must say this is a surprise!" Mrs. Weasley said in total disbelief, wringing her hands anxiously. We know had the attention of all the diners- even Snape had taken a break from stuffing his slimy face to watch what has happening.

Pretending to be embarrassed, I said softly, "It was a surprise to me, too! I guess I really have been in denial- and for a long time! I love you, Harry James Potter," I gazed into Harry's vivid emerald green eyes, seeing for the first time a hint of the usual life, the happiness, and the glimmer of hope, as I tried to look like a lovesick teenager.

Daring a quick glance in Ron and Ginny's direction, I noticed both of them were doing quite a poor job of hiding their disgust...and deep anger. "_Just how far are you going to take this, Harry?" _I cringed, panicking when a new thought hit me: was he going to kiss me? Not that I would really mind- I'm sure Harry is an excellent kisser- but, _REALLY!_ I seriously harbor no feelings greater for him than that of a sister to a brother- and kissing your sibling full on the lips is INCEST. Harry and I wouldn't last for a minute after a snog- the way Ron and Ginny were about right now, within three seconds-forget wands- they'd kill us with their bare hands. And Ron! Ron would NEVER snog a girl who had been in a lip-lock with his best mate, for goodness sakes! And me! Sixteen years old, never been kissed- I wanted my first kiss to come from the object of my fancying!

Luckily, I needn't had worried. Harry's an extremely intelligent wizard. He knew exactly what to do to make both Ron and Ginny so jealous they were seeing red- and yet stop before all saw the red of a certain wizard and witch's blood. Pressing me even closer to his body, as if that was even possible, he pressed a feathery light kiss on my cheek and was making moves for my pouty red lips (yeah right!) when...

"I've bloody lost my appetite!" Ron stormed out of the room with his younger sister hot on his heels. Bloody. Perhaps we had made a mistake.

"Please excuse us, Mrs. Weasley." I literally dragged Harry by the hand and up the stairs where, by the loud stampeding and stomping I had heard seconds earlier, I had assumed the two youngest Weasleys had gone.

"Ronald! Open this door right now," I snapped, pounding hard on the bedroom door.

"Make me," was his muffled response. Fudge nut. It almost sounded as though he was crying- definitely NOT a desired effect of this little escapade.

"Out of the way," Fred materialized- and, well, if looks could kill I would have been dead. Grrrr. "It's obvious you two were joking- but not to my dear brother, Ron, who is currently sobbing his heart out in this bedroom," he said angrily. "Not a very funny joke, Harry and Hermione. Not at all. A wizard's heart is not to be toyed with- especially in this time of war. Alohomora!" The door swung open revealing a red-faced, sniffling Ron.

"I'll take care of this," I mouthed to Harry, who walked determinedly in the direction of the bedroom Ginny and I shared.

"Er," I began awkwardly, closing the door behind me, "Harry and I don't love each other any more than a brother would love a sister."

"As if I should believe that," Ron snorted, advancing towards me.

"You should believe that," I said as calmly as possibly under the circumstances, remembering this was my- well, and Harry's- fault. I edged my way back, as Ron kept on moving closer and closer.

"Frankly, I don't bloody know what to believe," he said furiously, taking a few more long strides until I was practically backed up against the grimy wall. "I thought I could trust you two- my best mates in the whole world! Obviously, I was wrong," he spat, blue eyes alight with fury as he stood a mere two inches away from me, arms crossed.

"Ron, you have to trust me," I pleaded, resisting the urge to run my hands through those silky locks knowing now was definitely not the time. "It was just a joke. Not even planned, mind you. Harry and I were just trying to see if Ginny-and you (fudge nut! I DID NOT want to say that) would become jealous." Stupid, stupid, stupid! I did not just mention making Ron jealous!

Some of the anger seemed to drain from him. Looking a more than a wee bit bewildered (hate to say it, but quite a normal expression for Ronald Weasley) he said slowly, "I know Ginny likes Harry, but..."

Bloody. It was coming now. I inwardly groaned, cringed, and mentally thought about a thousand naughty words- all at one time! (They always say women can multitask!). He was going to stare at me with those luscious blue eyes and ask the dreaded question as the pieces would finally fall together in that little (did not just say that!) brain of his. I had to do something- and fast! It was now or never. Summing up all my non-existent Gryffindor courage (I could not even handle a boggart in my 3rd year DADA test- it changed into Professor McGonagall saying I failed all of my examinations and I ran out of the room, SCREAMING!) I leaned forward and said as seductively as possible (which really wasn't much, considering I am the nerdy, bookish Hermione Granger), "Do you really believe I would do this if I was in love with Harry?" as our lips were about to meet in a sweet, tender, _passionate_ kiss.

I know, I know- extremely wicked on my part, leaving this chapter just dangling like that. However, who doesn't like a good cliffhanger? Stick around to find out what happens next!


	6. Of Interrupted Snogs

**A/N: Weeeeee! An update a few days early! Question to all my wonderful readers and reviewers: How much longer should I continue this fiction? I'm having a blast writing it and don't plan on ending it anytime soon, I just need feedback of where I should take this story. I mean, after Ron and Hermione kiss –er- if they ever kiss (oops, just gave away plotline) should I still continue the story? Criticism and suggestions appreciated! To all my lovely reviewers...THANK YOU! A marshmallow peep to each of you! And a huge chocolate bunny! Luv ya guys!**

**LadySimone123-** **Yes, I created the cliffhanger for the sole purpose of annoying you, Miss S! I can't believe some of the things I come up with (then again, remember what we discuss in our notes?), but perhaps, like Hermione, I'm letting my more "wild" (as if I can even be wild!) side shine. Hmm...good point- is that why Colin always denies liking me when its so obvious there's chemistry between the great trumpet player and I?**

**Lara Potter- Amen, sister! Harry is very SEXY- and he's all mine (oh, sorry Ron!). Just joshing. Anyways, I'm glad you enjoyed Ron's antics- I love portraying him as the daft, dramatic bloke, and yes, one who is also a bit on the clueless, sometimes a bit slow side. However, somewhere beneath that vivid red hair Ron most definitely possess great intelligence- I can't wait until JK Rowling reveals it!**

**jenn- Thanks for the endearing compliment! You will just have to wait and read what happens next!**

**Mental357- I know, that's a terrible place to leave a chapter hanging- thank you very much for your great compliment- encouraging, wonderful reviews like yours make me ecstatic! Yes, I'll remember your warning- I'm posting the new chapter a day after you reviewed! Hope you enjoy chapter six!**

**Lipgloss- Thank you very much- do you really think someone will interrupt? Hmmm...remember the rule of the Weasley house- there can never be a dull moment...**

**scubagurl- Sorry, I know that cliffhanger was mean- oh, he believes her all right, it's just a matter of "does the snog ever happen?"**

**goblin monkey- I'm happy you're enjoying this story thus far- thank you SO much for your wonderful compliments! Don't worry, I'll try not to leave you hanging- I update it about once a week, so...**

**TheDaugherOfKings- Tell me about it- I got shivers of disgust just reading what I wrote about Harry/Hermione- is it a kissy cliff? I wouldn't be too sure about that...Glad you loved the chapter- it's really fun making the older witches, in your words, act "delightfully evil" –(ooh, I love that phrase- is it okay if I use it in my story?)**

**zmanjz- Thanks for pointing that out- that was something I debated long and hard over**

**DaggerQuill- ...Well? **

**Emma-Lynn- Did she kiss Ron? You'll have to read this chapter to find out! I enjoy portraying McGonagall as not just a stuffy, intelligent old witch like she is in the book- I think beneath the tight-lipped smile and neat bun there is a person who likes to have some fun- especially by teasing younger witches such as her favorite student, Hermione. Cliffhangers are fun! You rock, sista!**

**suckr4romance81789- THANK YOU! Yes, I'm a terribly cruel person to leave everyone hanging, I'll admit that. H/Hr grosses me out too- I refuse to read any romances between those two! I'm glad you love my story- please, enjoy chapter six!**

**aishteru- All right, I'm updating now because you –er- everyone is anxious for chapter six! Thank you very much to a loyal reviewer!**

"Mum says you're to come down for treacle tarts," Fred trailed, as he barged into the bedroom and stopped dead in his tracks.

"Bloody," he gasped, eyes widening. "Ickle Ronniekins in an intimate position with Hermione!" I have to admit, the scene set before his eyes appeared to be anything but innocent. But, alas, it _was_. The presence (more accurately described as a rude butt-in) of a Weasley brother had once again interrupted what would've been an excellent snog- that is, if our lips had ever met. Then again, Ron's body was practically pressed up against mine, so it was logical to assume that something of a PG-13 nature was unfolding.

"Fred, would you mind terribly," I snapped with exaggerated anger, gesturing frantically towards the door. "Young lovers deserve privacy!" I pulled Ron even closer to me, if that was even possible. I could feel his every ragged breath and the furious pounding of his heart- but he had nothing on my reaction to this rather enjoyable situation.

"Sure," Fred stuttered, backing out of the door in a daze and blushing for the first time in the long five years I'd been acquainted with him.

"Well, where were we?" I teased the object of my affections sweetly, linking my arms around his neck.

"You don't have to do this, just to prove that you don't fancy Harry," Ron said weakly, as I played with the hair at nape of his neck. His cobalt blue eyes were looking anywhere but at me as his ears turned an even darker shade of red.

Heart beating a mile a minute, a wave of dizziness washing over me, and this wonderful, indescribable feeling in my stomach (A/N: Seeing as I am part of my school's chapter of the NBKC (never been kissed club) the romantic moments in my story may be lacking a bit, for I've never experienced it-yet!), I began, "What if..."

Unbeknownst to us, however, for the second time that day, fate was going to hold true...

"Bloody wall," the familiar voice of a very clumsy Auror swore as, by the sounds I was hearing, she ran head-on into the wall outside of the bedroom in which I was standing in, in very close proximity to the object of my affections. Ron jumped a bit overdramatically away from me as the door swung open. I checked my wristwatch. Yep, over two minutes had passed since Ron and I had entered our intimate position, which would qualify as a moment. And, in the Weasley house (okay, this is-was- Sirius's house, but seeing as the majority of the inhabitants of it are Weasleys...) there can never be a dull moment- something, or someone, simply always has to break the mood.

Unfazed by our flushed faces, guilty expressions, and bright red ears (well Ron's at least- mine are hidden behind a mass of scheming little buggers-my curls)-after all, she is an Auror- Tonks said casually, "Molly wanted me to see what was going on." A twinkle in her violet eyes, (which clashed horribly with her hair, which was currently a vivid orange) that conniving witch continued to lie through her teeth. "It's also time for dessert- your Mum says you fancy treacle tarts, Ron."

Pfht. I'll bet you a million galleons that this was not a task Mrs. Weasley had assigned. Nymphadora Tonks was, without a doubt, the most inquisitive, nosy, curious witch I'd ever had the pleasure meeting- but I still loved her to pieces. Since there were so few of us, the women at 12 Grimmauld Place had to stick together; thus, Ginny and I instantly bonded with her last summer during those memorable dinners.

"We'll go rescue Ginny," I sighed, extremely disappointed that the snog had never panned out. "_From extreme mortification,'_ I added silently, knowing how Ginny would react to the love of her life coming to "comfort" her.

"Gin!" I knocked lightly on the partially closed door. The scene that met my eyes was most satisfying. The Boy-Who-Lived and Ginny Weasley were sitting serenely on her bed, holding hands and brightly chatting.

"Get your bloody hands off my sister," Ron growled, advancing towards the couple.

"Ronald!" I tried to restrain him. "Holding hands is not immoral or suggestive in any way- I mean, honestly, we held hands at breakfast today and no one thought anything of it. Harry and your sister are old enough to make their own decisions. Besides, they may be holding hands in a platonic way- you know, just as friends. Just like-"

Ginny cut off my incessant babbling with a squeak of humiliation.

"Harry just asked me to feel his Quidditch calluses," she stuttered (a bit lamely, if you want my personal opinion), her face flaming.

"A likely story," her older brother snapped.

It was major payback time. "Well, how do they feel?" I probed slyly, smirking.

"Very good," Ginny stammered, her face blending in with her hair.

It was rather cute, really, how over-protective Ron was of his younger sister- in fact, it only made me fall in love with the bloke even more.

"Get your bloody hands off my sister, _Potter_," Ron said through clenched teeth, pulling out his wand. This situation was getting a bit out-of-control as he pointed it directly at the head of his best mate in the world.

"Ron," Ginny said soothingly, finally dropping Harry's hand (the latter who I noticed watched her action with obvious disappointment). "Harry and I are just friends! As Hermione said, friends can hold hands. (Random A/N: As quoted by my band director, "Friends can listen to "Endless Love" together in the dark!") Like you and her at breakfast!"

"Breakfast?" Harry asked quizzically. Luckily, Ginny's statement seemed to have thrown Ron off as he re-pocketed his wand and echoed, "Breakfast." Then, he awkwardly clasped Harry on the shoulder.

"I give you two my blessing," he said grudgingly as he sank onto the floor. "Just- whatever you do, Harry- please don't hurt her. Or else you'll have me to answer to." Looking at the lone figure on the grey carpet, looking more like a little boy with his big, wide, baby blue eyes and tousled hair, Ron did not look like much of a threat- then again, Harry knew all-to-well how the towering inferno of Ronald Weasley could be- that in addition to how loyal the Weasley brothers were to each other- and about their precious little sister- he'd have six full-grown men (all right, Fred, George and Ron may have the bodies of men, but definitely not the maturity) with their wands up his buttocks in a split-second.

"Honestly, Ron, it's not as though Harry's gotten me pregnant," Ginny snorted. "I don't know him terribly well- and, for the thousandth time, we're just friends! Nothing romantic!" Ginevra Weasley, of course, was conveniently failing to remember that only earlier that day she had admitted her undying, passionate love for the person in question- and that she had known him since that fateful day in the Weasley house when he had first laid eyes on her, clad in a nightgown.

"Pregnant?" Ron roared, obviously only hearing the keywords in each sentence. "Why, you bloody little b-"

Batting her eyelashes seductively, Ginny leapt into Harry's arms. "It's a boy," she announced dramatically. "You're going to be an uncle, Ron!"

"When did this all occur?" Ron spouted furiously, -er- playing along? You can never be sure with Ron- blimey, that bloke is _DAFT_!

"Last year, in the broom closet," Ginny sighed dreamily, gazing into Harry's piercing emerald eyes.

"I've had quite enough of this," Ron snapped, now looking a sickly green color.

"Gullible," Ginny sang loudly and off-key as he made moves to eloquently exit the room. I honestly couldn't hold it in any longer. A loud burst of laughter suddenly exploded from my mouth as I hastily tried to stuff my fist to soften the sound, but, of course, with no avail.

"You find this situation humorous?" Ron stuck out his tongue ever so maturely.

"Actually, I rather do. This is more interesting than...( I wracked my mind, desperately searching for something at Hogwarts I actually found slightly boring. Quidditch? Nah- the scenery was excellent-_Ron in his Quidditch uniform-) -_ than History of Magic!" I chirped. "In fact, I would appreciate if you all would please continue- it's a quite pleasant form of evening entertainment!"

"Frankly, you bloody scare me sometimes, Hermione," Ron shook his head incredulously. "You're just so sassy and-"

"Normal." I finished quietly. "Like every other teenage witch. Which would you prefer, Ron- a stuffy, bookish Hermione or one who likes to let loose once in a while?"

His answer surprised me.

"How about a little of both?" He suggested gently, taking my hand into his. "You, of all people, Hermione, can handle juggling two personalities."

Hmmph. The object of my affections wishes for me to have a multiple-personality disorder. I am seriously unloved and underappreciated by the world.

"I've got an even better idea," Ginny smiled and slung an arm around Harry and my shoulders. "Why don't we meander downstairs and inhale some of those bloody treacle tarts?"

"And I thought I was the one who always came up with the good ideas," I whined, shooting Ginny a mock glare.


	7. Spying on Harry

**A/N: I know I've posted this question before in an A/N, but no one really answered so I'm going to ask for readers' opinions again. How much longer should I continue this story for? Is it getting boring at all? Comments and criticism will be welcomed with open arms! Thanks to all my fantastic reviewers- 19 on this chapter- the highest amount I've ever received! A huge thank you goes out to LadySimone123, akemi, Lady Sinistra, the-sun-is-shining330, I AM EOWYN, N.C. Psychick, milkywaybar, Dwarfed Half Elf, Miss Court A-Doo ( a double thank-you goes out to you- you rock!), Pauly-85, Alli-Baby (times two- thanks for reviewing chapter five too!), MysteryALASKA, Heather (thank you very much for your encouraging compliments on chapter four and six!), Eponine Weasley, TheDaughterOfKings, aishteru, suckr4romance81789, One With a Constant Sugar High, and last, but definitely not least, Lara Potter. (Sorry I can't personally reply to each of you- I'd love to, but it would take up to much space and possibly land me in trouble for having my A/N so long! However, there's SO much I want to say to each of you, but I'll have to settle for... "I love you guys and hope you have an excellent, rainy (well, it's rainy where I live) weekend!"**

* * *

"I am bored," Ginny informed me at exactly 6:09 AM the next morning.

"This is honestly something that you could not have waited another bloody three hours to tell me?" I said grumpily, rolling over in bed.

"Seriously, 'Mione, this is important," she said earnestly, hopping onto my bed, accidentally landing on my ankles and practically breaking them in the process.

"Well, you and your bored self will simply have to go and have a bloody good time without me," I muttered sleepily.

"Please, Hermione?" begged the rather bothersome redhead possessing an annoying habit of waking her friends up at obscene hours of the morning.

"For Merlin's sake, Ginny," I snapped, burying myself deeper in the cozy cocoon of fluffy blue blankets I'd created, "Spy on Harry in the shower or something to amuse yourself. I, for one, am going to finish my nine hours of well-deserved sleep." I closed my bleary eyes, preparing to enter dreamland where a certain redheaded bloke sweeps me off my feet into a passionate embrace.

Having the grace to blush, Ginny corrected me. "Harry does not bathe until a bit later in the morning during vacation," she rolled her warm brown eyes dramatically.

"I'm sorry- I wasn't aware that it is necessary for a girl to know the bathroom routine of the object of her affections," I snickered. "Honestly, Gin- you're pathetic. Now if you'll excuse me, I really ought to get some more rest."

"Trying to snog my dear brother for a whole day really takes it out of a witch, eh?" Ginny sniggered.

"I was not trying to snog your brother!" I said hotly, now wide-awake. Ginny really should know by now that it is never a good idea to start a row with Hermione Granger at the crack of dawn.

"Yes you were!" she sang, running a brush through her thick red hair. "Three times within a twelve hour period, to be precise." She began counting them off rather obnoxiously on her fingers. "This morning, after he heard us talking about Harry, during Truth or Dare, and when you burst into his bedroom to comfort him after that bloody joke you and Harry played." (She shot me an evil glare as she spoke these last words).

My mouth dropped open and hung there in a rather unattractive position. "Fizzing Whizbees- how do you know this?" I asked incredulously; after all, she'd only seen the "Truth or Dare almost-snog."

"I am a Weasley," Ginny sad imperiously.

"Oh, that explains it all," I said sarcastically. "I'm surprised you're not still asleep- holding hands with the Boy-Who-Lived must be simply exhausting! I know from first-hand experience."

"You WHAT?" Ginny yelped, jumping off my ankles and then visibly relaxing when she realized I was referring to the -ahem-charade Harry and I had pulled.

"It's a rather nice feeling, being enfolded in the strong, muscular arms of the great Harry Potter. Merlin, his kisses- they're INDESCRIBABLE!" I sighed.

"Just how far did you go with Harry?" Ginny asked mock suspiciously, folding her arms across her ample chest.

"Er-, I reckon you could say we 'caught the snitch'," I giggled. "In front of a roomful of a dozen eyewitnesses, no less- including your Mum. Blimey, he is good," I moaned. "Didn't Harry tell you what he and I did together?"

"I believe Harry likes to keep his intimate actions to himself," Ginny gasped through bursts of laughter. "However, there is one way we can discover some of the dirty secrets hidden under those sexy robes of his..." I had a bad feeling about this as Ginny leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially, "It's not too late to spy on Harry..." Unbeknownst to us, however, a certain redhead had been standing outside of our and had heard every single word of our devious plan...

* * *

"Remind me again why we're doing this?" I murmured out of the corner of my mouth, gangster style. Hushing me, Ginny spoke so quietly I could scarcely see her lips move.

"To spy on Harry," she sighed.

"I mean, this really isn't a good idea," I giggled nervously. "Do you realize we're going to see Harry nake-?"

"Shhhh!" Ginny hissed, cutting me off, as she caught sight of a flash of raven hair through a crack in the door of the miniscule closet in which we were currently taking residence in-er- crammed in, to be more accurate.

"Your hair is in my mouth," I complained as Harry entered the loo. "And I currently have a moldy grey towel in very close proximity to my face."

"Hush!" Ginny snapped as Harry's emerald green eyes seemed to flicker in our direction for a few seconds. Sleepily, the Boy-Who-Lived sat on the closed toilet seat and began peeling his thin black socks off.

"He has bloody nice feet," Ginny spoke dreamily. "Look at those toes!"

"Shut, Ginevra," I snickered very un-ladylike. "You're telling me you've never seen Harry's naked little toes before?"

"Dear Godric! He's taking his pyjama top off!" my obviously obsessed friend shrieked.

"Blimey," I breathed. If I had thought Ron's chest was scrumptious...he had absolutely nothing on his best mate. Perfectly sculpted, chiseled six-pack abs... "A Quidditch practice a day keeps the flab away," I joked under my breath. 'But definitely not the witches,' I added silently to myself as I turned to Ginny and noticed her enraptured expression. However, it was just then that I started noticing that something rather peculiar was occurring. It was almost as though, somehow, miraculously (well, not really, considering how loud we had been talking) Harry knew that he had an audience...blokes don't normally put on such a show while undressing in the loo...do they? He _teasingly_, slowly had pulled his top and socks off- like a striptease!

"Ginny!" I managed to poke her in the ribs (not too difficult, considering she was practically sitting on my lap), "I think he suspects that we're in here."

"Why would you say that?" She questioned me dazedly.

"Because, although I know blokes are strange, especially Harry, (in the dim light, I could see Ginny sticking her tongue out at me at this remark) I've never heard of one taking a shower with his pants and boxers on!"

"Huh?" Ginny stared at me stupidly.

"Look!" I pointed to the handsome wizard who was now running the water for the shower, still clad in his pyjama bottoms, and presumably, also boxers or knickers of some sort underneath, but, obviously, I wasn't quite sure.

Recognition dawned on Ginny's face. "Dam," she swore as he began walking closer and closer to our little hiding spot.

"Fudge nut. " I mentally hit myself for ever agreeing to go along with the lame-brained scheme of hers.

"We can Apparate!" Ginny said excitedly.

"We're both underage," I rolled my eyes. "Besides, we've never had any formal lessons- and Apparation can be VERY dangerous." Good ol' logical, clever Hermione. Too bad she couldn't formulate a solution to this dilemma.

"So what?" Ginny snapped, holding onto my arm. "I'm sure if we both concentrate really hard on where we want to go ('I reckon Timbuktu would be a rather nice option') we'll be able to do it!"

"That's not the way it works, Gin," I gently reminded her. "You also may have forgotten that we are both not allowed to do any magic outside of school."

"Invisibility cloak?" Ginny whispered weakly as the door swung open.

"In Harry's trunk," I groaned, as I looked straight into the amused face of Harry James Potter.

"We need to talk," he said mock-sternly.

* * *

"Why do I feel as though I'm walking to my death?" I sighed to the blushing witch also being escorted by Harry to the bedroom he and Ron shared.

"Because we are. At least I am," Ginny grumbled.

"Death from extreme mortification," I suggested helpfully.

"You got it, girl," she said glumly as a Ron torn between anger and laughter met us at the bedroom door, much to my disappointment not bare-chested like the night before.

"So," he began.

"So," Ginny and I echoed. It was time for some major reputation saving.

"It's not what it looks like. I mean Ginny and I were not squashed in that tiny little closet to spy on Harry! Here is what happened. We were both sitting in the bathroom-"

"-shaving our armpits"

"when we heard footsteps approaching the loo"

"-naturally, we didn't want anyone to catch us in the midst of doing something like that"

"-because, you see, you kinda have to have your top half off to access your armpits"

"- and, well, obviously it's nothing Ron hasn't seen before- I mean, he does have me for a sister"

"- but anyways, we sprinted into the closet, so none of the males in this house would be flashed and that is why we were hiding in the closet," I finished my (and Ginny's) babbling lamely.

"Let me get this straight," Ron snickered. "You and my sister were shaving your armpits together in the loo at 6:45 in the morning?" 'A likely story,' his eyes warned me.

"Yes," I coughed, assuming a "sassy" position with my hands on my hips and one leg bent.

"It must be some sort of strange, ancient female ritual we've never heard of before," Harry said innocently, winking at Ron.

"Girl to girl bonding time, what more can I say?' Ginny scratched the side of her freckled nose.

"This is all fine and dandy," I fake yawned, "But do you lot realize it is before 7 AM on a day of summer vacation? I reckon we ought to just let this whole matter go and return to our respective bedrooms!"

My two best male mates shared a significant glance.

"That would be all "fine and dandy," in your words, Hermione," Harry began slowly.

"If I hadn't heard you two devious witches planning to spy on Harry in the shower," Ron smirked triumphantly.

Bloody. We really were in trouble.

"It was all Ginny's idea," I said accusingly, pointing at the red-faced redhead.

"It was all Hermione's idea," Ginny said simultaneously, gesturing in my direction.

"Excuse me," I began icily. "Why in Merlin would I want to spy on Harry? I'm not the one who fancies him."

"Oh, terribly sorry, I forgot," Ginny simpered. "You like Ro..."

I simply had to cut her off (although Ron must be terribly daft if that little brain of his is still failing to realize that I fancy him!).

"It was Ginny's plan, honestly!" I grabbed Harry's hand and pleaded him to believe me.

"I know the perfect way to solve this moral dilemma," Ron snickered.

"Hermione, how did you feel when you saw Harry with only his knickers on?"

"Well, he has a VERY nice chest," I trailed, feeling a bit of red tinge rising on my cheeks. Absolutely pathetic. This was the abs of my "almost-brother" we were discussing!

"Ginny?" The 15-year old witcth was speechless.

"Um. Er. Well. Ah..."

"I believe we have found the guilty party," I pointed out ever so sweetly.

"You know, Ginny," Harry began mock-seriously. "All you had to do was just simply ask me if you wondered what I look like without a shirt on," he said all in a rush. "And I assume the same goes for Ron and Hermione," he turned to me. "If you ever want to see Ron's bare chest, just ask!" Ron made an odd sort of gurgling sound in response to this and turned to me, his face an adorable right red.

"Oh, I've seen Ron's chest before," I said casually without thinking.

"WHAT?" Ginny and Harry yelled in unison. Ooops. Blimey, this was going to be an awkward situation to get out of!


	8. We DID NOT mate, for Merlin's sake!

**A/N: Thanks to my fantastic reviewers: smikies, Lavender Brown 17, LadySimone123, Lara Potter, I AM EOWYN, Ellie, MysteryALASKA, Alli-Baby, trixie009, Loku, woohoo, TheDaughterOfKings, Lipgloss, suckr4romance81789, reviewer 39, AmyChris, kitotterkat, Miss Court-A-Doo, Bella, goblin monkey, N.C. PysChick, aishteru, Pauly-85, and last, but certainly not least, milky way bar (terrible sorry if I happened to forget anyone :-). Twenty-four reviews on this chapter- WOW! It makes me feel very special. THANKS A THOUSAND TIMES to each of you wonderful, magnificent readers. Now I present to you...chapter eight! I was experiencing a writer's block for most of the week, but inspiration finally struck and now I simply can't wait to start writing chapter nine! You have a fair amount of chapters left in this story, my dear readers- I have no intention of finishing it anytime soon! Thanks to those reviewers who gave advice on how many more chapters I should have- 4 or 5 seems reasonable! As always, read, review, and enjoy! A huge, mouthwatering Hershey's chocolate bar to each person who reviews! **

* * *

Ron slumped on his bed, wrinkling his Quidditch pajamas (Golden Snitches flew over every few inches of the blue cotton material) and buried his face into his hands. 

"I believe Ron doesn't feel comfortable discussing this," Ginny smirked, throwing a significant glance Harry's way.

"Ronald," I snapped. "This will only make it look like we actually did something...Merlin, it's nothing to be ashamed of!"

"Hermione's right," Ginny said sweetly, a wicked smile gracing her face. "Mating is a natural, healthy, normal action for a man and a woman who love each other dearly to share."

"Ginny," I said through clenched teeth, feeling the color rise on my cheeks, "Ron and I didn't _mate_!"

"Sorry," my git of a best friend grinned innocently. "It was just an assumption I made when you said that you saw Ron's bare chest!"

"Has it ever occurred to you," I said icily, peering at a Ron-who-wished-the-floor-would-swallow-him-up out of the corner of my eye, "that there could be other, non-romantic situations where a person could be without his or her shirt on?"

"Oh, so you had your shirt off too!" Ginny shrieked triumphantly.

Dear Lord. Of all of the witches at Hogwarts to befriend, I just had to choose Ginny in the third year ( we didn't really get close until the big fight , involving Crookshanks, Scabbers, a certain daft redhead, and I, had occurred- I had complained for hours to Ginny about what a prat her brother was, and we quickly bonded).

"For your information," I huffed, "I was wearing a light blue nightgown when I saw Ron clad in just his knickers." Eat slugs, Ginevra!

"That would, of course mean," Harry began slowly, "that this situation occurred sometime at night."

Bugger. The suspicious circumstances were piling up.

"All right, I reckon I'll admit it," I sighed, pulling Ron to his feet to stand beside me. "Ron and I..."

"You didn't!" Ginny breathed incredulously.

"We did." I finished quietly.

"Did what?" Harry choked as Ginny gaped wordlessly, her mouth very much resembling one of a fish.

"We..we..."

"You..."

"Ron and I...we rendezvoused in the living room two nights ago," I hid a smile.

"And?" Ginny prompted me with an eyebrow. I could feel that bloody blush of mine rising on my cheeks.

"And, well, I had woken up in the middle of the night from a terrible nightmare, one involving Ron, and I had to check and make sure he was all right. His bed was empty, so I snuck downstairs in hopes of finding him. Eventually I located him in the living room, and he was clad in his pyjamas for that night- boxers and no shirt."

"Bet you liked that," Ginny muttered, quieting with a look from Harry.

"Nothing happened, honest. Your brother just quickly comforted me, and, bam, I was back in my _own _bed." I conveniently left out the fact that I had sat in his lap, played with his hair, and fallen asleep, waking up in the morning in the arms of the love of my life.

"And?"

"And? Do you want me to give you a blow by blow account of what happened, per say? Because, I do believe we really ought to return to the original point of discussion- the fact that you were spying on Harry in the shower!"

"Right." Ron agreed, finally unburying his beet-red face from his hands. "Although, Hermione, you were also part of the guilty party."

"Oh, that," I said breezily, picking an invisible piece of lint off of my nightgown, "I only accompanied her so her bloody complaining would cease."

"There's only one way to solve this, I'm afraid." Ginny waved her arms dramatically.

"I will take the blame," she said simply. I stared at her incredulously. Where in Merlin was this coming from?

"However, just to make sure that Hermione is completely innocent, we'll have to ask her a few questions. Which do you prefer better, Hermione? Black or red?"

"Red," I shrugged without thinking.

"Blue or green?"

"Blue," I said a bit harshly. "What is this, Gin, the Spanish Inquisition?" The two blank faces that followed my remark reminded me that I was in the presence of two Purebloods who had no clue about Muggle history.

"Whatever that is, no," Ginny smirked. "This is just a test of your innocence, assuming, of course that you haven't lost it to Ron."

"Not funny," I sneered.

"On the contrary, I find this quite amusing," Harry chortled, a smile playing on his lips.

It just dawned on me then what Ginny was getting at. Her insinuation about Ron had shed a new light on her seemingly random questions about my preferred colors.

Damn. I had been describing Ron. That luscious red hair, silky blue eyes...but now it was time to have some fun. Grinning evilly, I rubbed my two hands together and simpered, "Do continue, my dear friend."

"Freckles or no freckles?"

I quickly searched through my ginormous brain for a mental picture of a certain Bulgarian Seeker. "No freckles."

Ginny furrowed her brow. Ha. Her lame attempt was clearly not working on the clever, sly Hermione.

"Glasses or no glasses?"

"No glasses- but deep hazel eyes that seem to pull me in."

"What the bloody hell are you two talking about?" Ron, being the daft git that he is, stared at me as though I was going crazy, his head bobbing back and forth between his sister and I as though he was watching an exciting Chudley Cannons game. Harry was smirking most rudely at the two of us, sending subtle winks our way every few seconds. At least half of the male part of the Golden Trio had some clue.

Ginny ignored the confused looks and glared at my answer. "Seeker or Keeper?"

"Seeker, I reckon," I said, fighting to keep a straight face.

"Let me get this straight- you like a Seeker with hazel eyes?" Ginny asked me a bit suspiciously, for she obviously knew exactly what I was playing at, but had still fortunately left out two of my answers- red and blue. Or, more accurately, red hair and those wonderful blue eyes...

"Vicky. It has to be Vicky," Ron bellowed, now red in the face with anger, as the gears finally clicked in his head. I nearly jumped out of my nightgown hearing his voice, because for about the past three minutes he had been doing a bloody good job of imitating a mute.

"Viktor, Ronald," I reprimanded him.

"All right, _Viktor,"_ he spat. "I honestly don't know what you see in that prat, Hermione- he's a GIT!"

I waved this off. "So, Ginny, what was the point of this questioning?" I inquired, twirling a stray lock of hair around my pinky.

"To see whether you fancy Ron or Harry," she sighed. "Obviously, it's neither! You seem to be rather partial to hazel-eyed Bulgarians who don't know how to pronounce your name correctly." (I saw the barest hint of a smile on Ron's lips at those last words). "However, I feel it would be best if I asked you one final question- who would you rather snog- Ron or Harry?"

I had a feeling that Viktor Krum wouldn't get me out of this one.

"Um, er, well, I.."

"This will not be held against you," Ginny said gently.

"Ron?" I said meekly, wishing with every fiber of my being that a Hungarian Horntail would come bursting through the window, with Lord Voldemort riding on its back. '_Anything'_, I silently told myself, '_would be better than this embarrassment_.'

Harry cleared his throat. "May I inquire as to why you chose Ron?"

"He has nice lips," I blurted without thinking.

"And I don't?" Harry said, mock-wounded.

"I dunno," I grinned angelically at Ginny. "Perhaps you could kiss Ginny so she could share the answer to that question with us."

"Damn you!" Ginny swore not so quietly as Harry walked until he was standing shoulder to shoulder with her.

"One question, before I snog Ginny here," Harry said wickedly, as a huge gasp was emitted form the-girl-about-to-be-snogged-by-the-boy-who-lived.

"Just how do you know the quality of Ron's lips?"

"Women's intuition," I blushed and managed a weak smile.

"You don't have to do this, just to prove that you have nicer lips than Ron," Ginny whispered lamely as Harry enfolded her in his arms. Merlin. If only my knight in shining armor would do that to me. '_My knight has seemed to have fallen off his horse,'_ I snickered, catching sight of Ron once again pretending to be invisible, his carrot-top head currently taking residence in those strong, large hands of his (you know what they say about guys with large, gentle hands- er, getting off the subject here, sorry- I, Hermione Jane Granger solemnly swear to keep my mind out of the gutter henceforth!).

"I'm not looking! I'm not looking!" I heard him mutter to himself. Poor bloke. Pity, really, having to watch your sister share a good snog with your best friend at...I glanced at the alarm clock on the bedside table. "Seven 'o'clock" read the bright red numbers. Bloody, it was definitely WAY too early for romance!

I suddenly jumped up and ran over to Harry. "You don't _have _to do this," I whispered very quietly in his ear. "I mean, this is just an experiment of sorts..." I obviously knew how much Ginny would be hurt when she realized the man of her dreams harbored no feelings for her. Then again, Harry Potter was not known for just snogging any random girl -I mean, look at Cho! He fancied her for quite some time before they shared a good snog! He simply wasn't the type of wizard to freely give kisses away.

"Hermione," Harry said seriously, "Love isn't an experiment."

"Love?" Ginny squeaked, stepping back from him. Heehee. Harry said those last few words a tad bit too loud.

"Um, love," Harry stammered awkwardly. I took this as my cue to leave the two alone in the room.

"We'll be leaving now," I cleared my throat significantlyand dragged Ron through the door, closing it behind me.

"What did you do that for?" Ron complained.

I tutted. Honestly. "Do you really reckon that Harry wants to admit that he fancies your sister in front of her over-possessive older brother and other best mate?"

Ron started towards the door. "He fancies Ginny? That bloody prat! I'll tear him from limb to limb with my bare hands! They better not be snogging..."

I pulled him back until his back and my stomach touched.

"The last time I checked, Ron," I said gently in the collar of those sexy pyjamas, "You gave Harry your "blessing" if he ever wished to pursue a relationship with Ginny."

His rage deflated at my calming words (and probably also the fact that we were practically spooning standing up) and he slowly turned around to face me. The tips of his ears reddened a bit (all right, more than a bit) when he realized how close together we were standing.

"I don't want her to ever get hurt, that's just it," Ron said softly, running a hand through his messy hair.

I never fully appreciated the Ron's height until that moment. I shivered as I noticed how much he towered over me- a good six inches. For some odd reason, I've always secretly liked when blokes (specifically Ron) are taller than me; it seems to make them (him) seem so much more romantic, handsome, _seductive_! Imaginethe things Ron could do to me with that height advantage... (Once again, naughty, highly inappropriate thoughts, Hermione!). (A/N: Don't any of you fellow gals out there agree with the height thing? I personally love it when guys are taller than me...not that I've ever done even close to the things that dirty Hermione is thinking about! I've nevereven beenkissed, for goodness sakes!).

"That's very touching," I sighed, as our eyes met. I wrapped my arms around him and gave the object of my affections a long hug. Now, Ron and I have shared hugs in our earlier years, but recently I've noticed something has changed. Or, more accurately, someone has chnaged- two someones. Wonderful warmth spread from the tips of my toes to my neck as I felt my body mold to his. A jolt of electricity zinged through my body as I realized he _wasn't letting go_. I made up my mind. I'd been flirting (no pun intended) around this matter for much too long. I had nothing to fear- if I was reading the signs right (not those that that old hag, Trewlaney, teaches) Ron at least felt a little more for me than that of a close friendship.

I took a deep breath. Summing up every ounce of Gryffindor courage, I began.

"Ron, there's something I need to tell you."

* * *

Bwahahahaha! Another lovely cliffhanger! Don't worry, loyal fans! The next chapter **WON'T** be the last! 


	9. Eyes of Cobalt Blue, Lips of Red My Sexy...

**A/N: Oh my word! 37 fantastic reviews on this chapter- I feel truly loved! A tremendously large thank- you to...Green Eyes, RedheadedWeasley's2nm, Loku, Sheltielover, N.C.PysChick, Seasonings, LadySimone123, TheDaughterOfKings, Sunflowa, Ronsreallove, AmyChris, aurorasakura16, dancerrdw, fan or your's, raven92269, love3luvfromCes, Pauly-85, brainychic96, aishteru, Nefertiri's Handmaiden, Alli-Baby, daichi, One With A Constant Sugar High, milky way bar, Flair Verona, Eponine Weasley, kitotterkat, angelssidekick, Lost.Somewhere.Out.There, Emma-Lynn, Melly, Moonhawkpebbly, Lucy, Digimon ruler.9, Lara Potter, Miss Court-A-Doo, and last, but definitely not least, the first reviewer on this chapter...suckr4romance81789! Now I have the pleasure of presenting to you loyal reviewers...CHAPTER NINE! Read, review, and most importantly and above all else, ENJOY!**

* * *

**"**Yes, Hermione?" the object of my affections questioned. 

"I...I..." I stuttered. One look in those bloody blue eyes of his and I completely lost any ability to speak the English language. '_This is ridiculous,'_ I snapped to myself.

"I..I..."

"You..."

"I..I...like..." For Merlin's sake! The cleverest student at Hogwarts who had faced everything from Death Eaters to werewolves couldn't confess her undying love to the bloke she had known (and fancied) for years. Bloody pathetic is all I have to say.

"Someone," I finished very lamely.

"Someone." Ron repeated, taking a step back and looking at me suspiciously. "Who?"

I cringed. "I can give you a physical description!" I said quickly, trying to salvage the situation, though mentally noting to use non-identifying characteristics. "He's tall, slim yet well-built, muscular, plays Quidditch, has brilliant hair and those eyes..." Ron would seriously have to be one daft bloke not to realize, by the fact that my face was BRIGHT red- even redder than Ginny's when Harry had accidentally heard that she fancied him with a passion- that I was discussing the GIT STANDING RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME- him!

Wordlessly, Ron pushed open the bedroom door and then just as quickly closed it when he caught sight of, to him, a very DISTURBING scene- Harry and Ginny sharing a sweet snog. Sigh. The hero also gets the gorgeous girl. Unfortunately, my hero isn't falling for the rather ugly witch with hair that has excessive volume.

"I reckon Harry's lips are nicer than yours," I laughed stiffly, trying to break the tension. "At least, that's what Ginny's going to say. Not that any of us knows the quality of your lips, though." My fake giggles faded as I realized that once again I had said something incredibly stupid and made a total prat of myself.

Silently, he set off on a brisk pace down the hallway and into the loo. I followed him without thinking (something that has been happening more and more frequently- brain, where art thou?).

"Do you mind, Hermione?" he snapped peevishly after he had closed the bathroom door and whirled around to find me standing behind him.

"Sorry!" I said quickly, trying to jiggle the doorknob behind my back and make a stylish exit.

"Sorry for what?" Ron said angrily, taking large steps towards me until we were no more than three inches apart. "For fancying Krum?"

My mouth dropped open. "I do not fancy Viktor!" I said hotly, still attempting to turn that bloody doorknob. "Frankly, why do you care?"

"Because I AM YOUR BLOODY BEST MATE!" he roared, turning the faucet on aggressively and watching the stream of ice cold water splatter against the cracked enamel of the sink.

"I know that, Ron," I let out a huge sigh, sinking to the worn pale blue carpet. I idly fiddled with the stray ends of the black rug near the sink when I felt my wandering fingers touch a piece of paper. Fizzing Whizbees. This was NOT happening.

"What's that?" Ron questioned grumpily, for the time being accepting that I was telling the truth, which, in all honesty, I WAS!

"Oh, nothing, just a spare bit of parchment," I said lightly, failing to keep my voice even.

"Can I see this 'spare bit of parchment'?"

"No!" I said rather defensively, pulling it out from underneath the rug and clutching it possessively to my nightgown. "Er- it's mine!"

"Yours?" A reddish eyebrow was raised.

Grrr. I had escaped to the loo a few days earlier in search of a private place to think and write, free from inquisitive witches (Ginny and Mrs. Weasley) and a wizard that absolutely drives me buggers (Ron). Now, let me share something with you. I may be able to write, in Ron's words, "bloody brilliant" essays, but when it comes to poetry, I'm no match for Elizabeth Barrett Browning. Frustrated by a certain adorable redhead, the second my favorite eagle quill had touched the parchment as I sat on the closed commode, the words had poured out of me like Butterbeer. I had been rudely interrupted by loud pounding on the door with some choice words that clearly indicated that none other than the object of my affections had to take care of some rather urgent bodily functions. Obviously, not wanting him to watch me exit the loo with parchment in my hand (I could only imagine his incredulous reaction "Doing homework in the _bathroom_?") I had quickly hid it in the first logical place, promising myself to retrieve it later. Only, as distracted as I'd been for the following days (!#$ you, Ronald Weasley!), it had escaped my mind. Trust me- this was most definitely not something I wanted those brilliant eyes of his to see. There would be very serious repercussions.

_Eyes of cobalt blue, lips of red,_

_My sexy Ronald is a redhead._

_Muscular, tall, toned, and slim,_

_I ache to throw my arms around him._

_With an adorably freckled face and a lopsided smile,_

_Ron Weasley is a bloke I've fancied for quite a while._

_Loyal, courageous, intelligent...sigh..._

_If he ever rejected me I'd simply die!_

"Just a list I made a few days ago. It can get rather boring at times in the loo, as you know. I was constipated." For Merlin's sake, why do these highly embarrassing sentences keep pouring out of my mouth at such an alarming frequency?

"Constipated." Ron snickered. Hmmph. I'm sure Ronald Weasley is much too good to have ever had any of the problems we mere mortals experience once in a while concerning our digestive systems.

"Yes," I challenged him, my eyes asking, "do you have a problem with that?"

"So, can I read it?" He asked would-be casually.

NONONONONONONO! And did I mention...NO!

"You really wouldn't want to," I stalled, cursing that bloody red tinge that was rising on my cheeks at a disturbing rate. "Anyways, I have to go now and...and...and..."

Using my unusual loss of words and my being momentarily stumped (I was still trying to think of a reason as to why I just **had** to leave the loo that very instant) to his advantage, in a split-second Ron had effectively blocked my path out by utilizing those excellent Quidditch reflexes of his.

"You're not going anywhere, Hermione," he said huskily, "Until I'm finished with you."

I shivered as the full implication of those words hit me.

"Um, okay?" I barely managed to squeak.

"Oh, not like that!" Ron said in a rush, the tips of his ears and also the majority of his neck, face, and Godric-knows where else on his body during a delicate shade of red. "I mean, not unless you want to! Bloody, that didn't come out right. What I really mean is..."

"I understand, Ron," I said soothingly, easily silencing him by placing a finger to those tender lips of his. A more appropriate (er, naughty) response would've been to leap into his arms and passionately snog him for twelve and a half minutes. Clearly, however, that would not be a good course of action to pursue at that moment, so...moving on.

"Give me the letter. Now!" the beginning-to-get-cross redhead demanded at his attempt of sweetly.

"Nope," I said firmly, relishing the idea that we would very soon be involved in a heated quarrel. And who knows where that could lead to? (i.e., Ron turning his passion to other _things_!).

"Hermione," he said, exasperated. "Don't make me physically extract that list from your hands."

Teehee. That could be interesting. I had a vision of Ron fiercely pinning me to the wall, violently trying to grab the poem- but in the process _devouring..._oops, getting off the topic here.

"I'd like to see you try," I purposely instigated him, rising gracefully off the floor (those five years of ballet Mum forced me to take years ago really do come in handy sometimes!).

"Oh, you would?" That bloody lopsided-grin will be the end of me.

Panic seeped through me as I wondered what state my mind was in as I dangled the paper in question inches away from his hands. He simply could NEVER, EVER see this literary masterpiece.

"Actually, I wouldn't," I hastily corrected myself, stuffing the parchment in the only really safe place- down the front of my nightgown, underneath which I had luckily left my bra on from the night before. (In a houseful of men- all right, maybe four living there full-time- Percy, Mr. Weasley, Ron, and Harry, I figured there could be some potentially embarrassing situations involving my chest- better safe than SORRY!) (A/N: By the way, I am in no way hinting that Percy or Mr. Weasley would hit on Hermione- I am talking more along the lines that the nightgown is not that thick and thus some _stuff_ could possibly show). Parchment safely tucked in the valley between my two mountains, the elastic of my bra holding it in place since I obviously can't pull off what some voluptuous spies did during one of the Muggle wars and tuck secret documents in my bosom, I smirked ever-so maturely back at Ron.

"That was bloody unfair," he complained. "Using your gender to your advantage."

"I can think of many ways you could use yours," I grumbled in reply and retreated to the refuge of my bedroom before he could fully comprehend my remark.

* * *

"You're engaged in a battle of the hearts," Ginny informed me solemnly. 

I snorted. "You make it sound as though it's some terrible disease." I pulled on one of my favorite shirts, a powder-blue tank top (Merlin, it feels SO good to be free from the confines of those bloody robes!), and studied myself critically in the cracked mirror.

"A little on the skimpy side, dear," it wheezed. "And comb that hair."

"Just what I need- an ancient mirror giving me beauty advice," I groaned, rifling through the old wooden dresser in an attempt to find a pair of shorts that would reasonably match.

Ginny rolled her eyes. "I wouldn't call it an ailment," she pointed out. "Just a dilemma of the heart that you and Ron have to work together to solve."

"You should be the one to talk," I sighed dramatically, zipping up my worn and slightly-tight-at-the-waist jean shorts and flopping back onto my unmade bed. "I don't take advice from witches such as you who have no problem whatsoever. The object of your affections just waltzed right into your arms and held you in a passionate embrace- after you were found guilty of spying on him in the shower!"

Narrowing her eyes, Ginny stared at me suspiciously. "Just how do you know what unfolded between me and Harry?"

"I reckon it's obvious," I smirked, now sitting up and starting my daily hour-long wrestling match with my dark brown, curly rebellious tresses. I'd only been trying to get details out of Gin for the past ten minutes. "I'm not a kiss and tell person," she'd pointed out.

"Your brother saw you two snogging through the door," I told a wide-eyed Ginny. "And for the past ten minutes, you have been sitting in a daze on the floor, with one leg in and one leg out of your pyjama bottoms. Your eyes are glazed over and you are wearing a huge, goofy grin. In addition, your face is flushed and your lips are swollen. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that you and Harry were doing some serious snogging. "

"Oh, Hermione!" she suddenly burst. "It was WONDERFUL!"

"She can talk!"

"He's an EXCELLENT, FANTASTIC, BLOODY BRILLIANT, AWESOME, WONDERFUL, STUPENDOUS...(she went ON and ON!)...kisser!"

I broke in gently. "I get the idea, Ginny. You really don't need to give me a list of fifty adjectives that describe his kissing technique. I assume you enjoyed yourself?"

"Enormously." She practically moaned. Dear Godric.

"I can't take this any more!" I suddenly screamed, beginning to frantically pace around the room.

"What?" Ginny asked, still on her "Harry-high."

"You get to be attached to the lips to the object of your affections for Merlin-knows how long, while my bloke is too DAFT to realize that I bloody fancy him! I have to do something- and NOW!"

"Seduce him." Ginny was finally regaining her senses (er- maybe not!), although she was still on cloud nine.

"Excuse me?" I put my hands on my hips and gave her a piercing glare. "Hermione Granger does NOT know how to seduce anyone, and does NOT wish to seduce anyone.

"You wish Ron would seduce you." A large wink.

"That's besides the point." I let out a huge breath. "Anyways, could you imagine what would happen? I'd walk into his room, wearing a skimpy, revealing outfit, and his eyes would burn in agony of seeing something so disgusting and disturbing."

Ginny tutted. "You have an excellent figure, Hermione," she said rather kindly.

"Oh, yes- no chest, no definition whatsoever- I reckon I could be one of those bloody models in those rubbishy magazines Parvati and Lavender always have laying around," I snapped sarcastically.

"Back to the seduction topic," she steered me away from my self-woes. "Do it in a subtle way."

I chortled. "No matter how daft you may believe your brother to be," I snickered, "I highly doubt even he would not notice a living, breathing person of the female gender clad in provocative clothing."

"No, not that kind of seduction," the redhead witch sighed. "What I am talking about is little actions- accidentally brushing your hand against his, touching his leg, fluffing his hair, saying he looks adorable..."

I simple stared at her as though she had a huge, slimy goober dangling from her nostrils. "You have GOT to be kidding me," I said weakly. "I can barely say three words to the bloke without making a bloody idiot of myself- how to you expect me to successfully flirt, or in your words, _seduce_ him?"

"You'll start at breakfast." Ginny's tone indicated that her word was final. Oh, Merlin. What did I ever do to deserve this?


	10. Seducing Ron?

**A/N: Fizzing Whizbees-45 reviews! I really appreciate how so many people took the time to read and review Chapter 9! A ginormous (extremely big) THANK YOU goes out to: cathyrock, Seek, Schyler, GABBY, Lara Potter, milky way bar, sailorstarryeyes, GreenEyes, aurorasakura16, ShadowHexx771, Balewiyiel, Miss Court-A-Doo, Sunflowa, FairyPrincess, TheDaughterOfKings, joni, jenn, Bella, Thomas O'Malley, MyOnlyCat, I AM EOWYN, sakura668, Chrissy, Eloise, LadySimone123, antonia czinger, waterfaerie, Lipgloss, suckr4romance, Mandi Roberts, Amy Chris, Tay'slilgal, Eponine Weasley, DaggerQuill, KrazieChikadee, aishteru, dancerrdw, One With A Constant Sugar Highand last, but definitely not least,the lovely email reviewer Ellie!I would also like to thank the following readers who reviewed chapters other than 9 in the past week: Mrz. Potter, Lucy, Airifairy, mAlFoYiSaWeSoMe, Rupertlover14 and JSRfan. Now, without further ado, I present to you...the "Seduction Chapter" (although, I'm you beforehand that it may not turn out the way you expected it to, but it's still amusing!). **

* * *

"This is a terrible, terrible idea," I murmured into the Kleenex Ginny had handed me to blot off the excess bright red lipstick she that she had cajoled me into allowing her to apply on my lips. 

"No it's not," Ginny said absentmindedly, rifling through her cosmetic bag for a tube of mascara. "Blokes love big, pouty red lips!"

"Not this bloke," I corrected her, sorely tempted to wipe all the color off. "And not at 7:30 in the morning! He's likely to be more engrossed in devouring his kippers and porridge than staring at my mouth. Honestly, do you think Ron likes witches with stiff, made-up faces?" I was trying to be tactful- REALLY!

My close friend's shoulders visibly slumped.

"Hey, I'm sorry Gin," I said softly, trying to make amends. "I appreciate what you're doing for me and everything, but your brother has never been bothered before by the fact that I don't wear make-up. Even to seduce Ron I still want to be me- natural, wholesome Hermione."

"I was just trying to make you beautiful," she said dejectedly, returning the blue eyeshadow back to her bag as she watched me remove all traces of beauty products. "Not that you aren't already, of course," she added hastily.

I smiled wryly. "I reckon I get the point. How about just a light lipgloss?" I compromised as her brown eyes lit up. Unbeknownst to me, however...

* * *

"I can't take this anymore!" Ron growled, practically pulling his vivid hair out of its roots. Harry patted his arm sympathetically. 

"Just tell her, mate," he grinned goofily, mind still whirling over his encounter with his best mate's little sister, who, well, wasn't so little any longer. His grin widened. "In fact, why don't you seduce her?"

Ron literally spit out the last of the Chocolate Frogs he had been saving since the journey home on the Hogwarts Express.

"Bloody hell, Harry!" he gasped. "I can't do that! Furthermore, Hermione would not want me to do that!"

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Harry chuckled under his breath. "Not full-fledged seducing," he said louder, rolling his emerald eyes. "Just small, subtle actions- play with her curls, touch her hand, pay her compliments..."

Ron relaxed a tad bit. "Oh, you mean _flirting,_" he sighed, an expression of relief crossing his face which quickly turned to utter horror. "Harry- I DON'T KNOW HOW TO FLIRT!"

"You'll learn fast," Harry shrugged, trying to flatten down his messy raven-colored hair, but, of course, his efforts were met without success. "Starting at breakfast." '_Ginny Weasley, you are my hero,'_ Harry snickered in his mind. He and Ginny had done more than just passionately snog...oh yes, much more (A/N: Get your mind out of the gutter, readers!), in the form of planning a wicked matchmaking scheme involving a certain witch and wizard who were clearly head over heels for each other but were too daft and scared to admit their feelings.

"Matchmaker, Matchmaker, make me a match," Harry sang softly under his breath as he followed Ron into the basement kitchen.

* * *

"Good morning, Ron," I smiled widely as the object of my affections took a seat RIGHT NEXT TO ME!" 

"Morning, 'Mione," he flashed me a lopsided grin, that, let me tell you, weakened my knees to a jelly and would've resulted in me falling to the floor in an ungraceful heap if it hadn't been- thank Merlin- for the invention of chairs- '_No matter how uncomfortable they may be,'_ I thought as I squirmed around in my hard wooden seat, trying to find a nonexistent soft spot.

Mrs. Weasley looked at Harry and Ginny (who were holding hands surreptitiously under the table) suspiciously. Bloody- that woman can spot romance a mile away!

"Ginny?" she questioned. Blushing madly, her daughter nodded as she understood the unspoken question communicated through the bond only mothers and their children canshare. (A/N: Does anyone understand what I am speaking of?).

"Yes. Harry and I are together," Ginny clarified, sneaking a glance over at her shyly grinning boyfriend. I had to hand it to Mrs. Weasley- she took in all in stride, as if this was a normal, daily occurrence.

"I'm happy for you two," her Mum said simply, placing a plate of toast on the table and looking the couple over with a hint of a smile. Then her eyes began to tear up.

"What's wrong, Mum?" Ginny asked concernedly while Ron looked faintly alarmed.

"Nothing, dear. Just an old woman reminiscing."

"You're not old, Mrs. Weasley," I said truthfully- for SHE WASN'T! Many didn't believe that Molly Weasley was only in her late thirties- the stress of seven children and the growing threat of Voldemort- and the fact that her "good-as-a-son" Harry was #1 on Voldemort's agenda, gave her premature aging in the form of hints of grey hair, excessive lines, and wrinkles on her face.

"Remembering what?" Ginny questioned curiously.

Her Mum gave us all a watery smile. "When Arthur and I were falling in love 25 years ago (**A/N: I know the dates don't jive, but please bear with me!), **Voldemort was quickly beginning his reign of terror." She got a faraway look in her sea-blue eyes. "We were so young, so innocent, living in a world full of terrible evil. We didn't have time for a proper, slow relationship. Three months after we recognized our affections for each other, we were married."

My mouth dropped open.

"That must have been a whirlwind relationship," I pointed out, taking a sip of pumpkin juice (Merlin, I am ADDICTED to that stuff).

"Yes dear, it was," Mrs. Weasley smiled as her mind went back in time to twenty-some years ago. Her face then grew serious. "However, do you know why we did that? Because we weren't sure if we would live to see another day. Our love for each other was so strong that we knew we simply wouldn't be able to survive if either of us was killed. Therefore we made every minute count and were wed as soon as possible so we could enjoy the pleasures of being husband and wife, at least for a little while." Her face faintly colored at those last words, and I barely restrained myself from letting out a small giggle.

"That's so sweet, Mrs. Weasley," I sighed.

"You never told me this version of your courtship," Ginny said mock-accusingly.

"The point I'm trying to get to here, you lot," she silenced Harry and Ron who were beginning to chatter again, "Is that in a world full of uncertainties like today, you must live life to the fullest. You must not let anything be unsaid, confessions unmade- you must have no regrets." She glanced significantly at Ron and me. Blimey, did that get me thinking! Who were Ron and I fooling, dancing around a relationship at a time like this? Who knew what would happen in the future? I'd never be able to live with myself if Ron was ever murdered, not aware of my deep, true love for him- or vice versa. That did it. For once, I was actually going to take the advice of Ginny Weasley by my own will.

Very gently and subtly, I began to rub Ron's foot with my own. His reaction was BLOODY PRICELESS!

Nearly jumping out of his chair, he demanded of the occupants of the table, "Who's touching my foot?"

"Perhaps it's Kreacher," I smiled angelically, raising a forkful of kippers to my mouth.

The object of my affections proceeded to get down on all fours and crawl under the table, searching for that wretched house-elf, much to the amusement of Harry, Ginny, and Mrs. Weasley, who, being the very keen and observant people they are, had caught on quickly.

"Touching my body parts," he growled in a muffled voice. "You bloody bugger! I'm going to tear you from limb to limb WITHOUT MAGIC!"

"There's no one here," came Ron's confused voice a few seconds later.

"Brilliant deduction, Sherlock," I snickered.

"Who's Sherlock?" an irate redhead-now-sitting-back-in-his seat and his sister questioned in unison.

"A fictional detective in a Muggle book series," I patiently explained, once again surprised at how ignorant the Weasleys- even though they were Purebloods- could be of the other world. I mean, HONESTLY! Who has never curled up with a good Sherlock Holmes mystery? (Voice echoes despondently because no one answers and instead stares at the bushy-haired witch almost pityingly).

"Right," Ron smirked. "I bloody knew that."

"Ronald, don't swear!" Mrs. Weasley, Ginny and I all reprimanded the redhead in unison, who immediately blushed.

Harry and Ron proceeded to talk quietly amongst themselves about guy things, and as Ginny and her mother began to chat about what new school supplies she'd need for the upcoming year, I could feel my eyelids began to droop. I'd been up since the crack of dawn, for Merlin's sake, and had gone through some exhausting experiences in the following two hours (all involving a certain bloke and his best mate, of course). Finding it more and more difficult to resist sleep, I concluded that a little nap wouldn't hurt and gave into the sleep dust that had accumulated.

_"You see Hermione, I rather fancy you," Ron flashed me his lopsided grin as he took another step closer to me._

_"You do?" I breathed, shivering as he ran a strong hand down my cheek._

_"So beautiful," he whispered huskily and then immediately passionately pressed his lips against mine. _

_"Oh, Ron!" I moaned as he trailed dozens of fiery-hot kisses up my neck and pulled me against him. _

_"Enjoying this, Mrs. Granger?" he said lazily as I fervently ran my hands through his hair, down to those broad shoulders, to his sexy, firm chest._

_"Tremendously," I barely managed to squeak before his lips devoured mine again. _

_Once again, I moaned. "Oh, Ron! Please don't stop!" _

_"I wouldn't dream of it," he smirked, as he ran his fingers up and down my spine._

_"Hermione! Hermione!" I heard a faraway voice calling. "Ron," I gasped, "You are a damn good kisser..."_

"Hermione!" This time the voice wasn't in my dream, as I awoke from my steamy thoughts and found myself face to face with a going-crazy-with-laughter-Ginny. This was simply not happening.

"Er-, hello," I said groggily, fully taking in the scene around me and seeing a Ron-with-the-absolutely-brightest-shade-of-red-imaginable-covering-his-face, and a Harry-about-to-pee-his-pants-from-merriment.

A bit irate at having my wonderful daydream interrupted, I snapped rather icily, "What the bloody is going on?"

"You fell asleep, and, well, you obviously had a very exciting, stimulating dream." Ginny made no attempt to hide her snigger.

"I did not!" I cried indignantly.

"Yes you did!" she smirked.

"You talked in your sleep, Hermione," Harry barely managed to snort before dissolving into another fit of manly giggles.

"You moaned," Ginny shrieked, obviously enjoying this a whole heck of a lot more than I was. "You said, 'Oh Ron! Oh Ron! Please don't stop!' And, my personal favorite, to quote you word for word, 'Ron, you're a damn good kisser!'"

Face steaming, I considered taking a leaf out of Ron's book and immediately crawling under the table. Only, I would never come out. I would make it my new home. '_Perhaps Ginny could shove some food under it every few days,' _I thought morosely.

There was no way out of this. I simply would have to hold my head high and utilize some of my Gryffindor pride- and courage, the latter of which the supply of was running rather low these days.

"So what if I did?" I said airily.

"It's a bit more significant than your stubborn mind may comprehend." Harry leaned back in his chair. "You see, normally when a witch moans a wizard's name in her sleep, punctuated with remarks such as "You're a damn good kisser," it means that she rather fancies the wizard and desires to share a good snog or even a shag with him!"

I took a deep breath. "So what if I do?"

* * *

"Hermione, it's not THAT bad," Ginny tried to convince me through the locked door. 

"Yes it is," I snapped, resuming my pacing around the bedroom.

"If you don't open that door right now," Ginny threatened, "I will use magic."

"You can't use magic outside of school!" I reminded her grumpily, flopping back onto my bed and staring at the cracked, dirty ceiling. "Please, just leave me alone!"

There was a long pause and suspicious sounds of something scratching the doorknob. Then, within a mere minute or so, the door swung open.

"Bobby pins," Ginnny said simply, throwing a bent one on the bureau. "The Muggle way to open locked doors."

"Well, aren't you just bloody brilliant," I grumbled, with great diffiuclty resisting the urge to wring a certain witch's neck.

"Why, I reckon I am," Ginny smiled and struck an arrognat pose reminiscent to that of a Muggle model.

"My life is RUINED!" I cried dramatically.

"Hermione," Ginny began sternly, "I thought you were better than this. So, the object of your affections knows you fancy him. What's the bloody big deal? I would expect you, possibly the cleverest witch to ever grace Hogwart's halls, to be able to handle a mere bloke! Let's face it, you've stared down the face of mortal danger so many times- this is absolutely nothing compared to those situations!" And with those parting words, Ginny Weasley exited our bedroom, obviously to find Harry and get another good snog out of him.

Ginny was exactly right, as usual. The only problem was, for me, facing Ron after he learned that I fancied him was just as scary as meeting face-to-face with Voldemort.

"What am I going to do?" I wailed despondently.

"You could start with combing thatbloody hair of yours," the old mirror wheezed.


	11. The MRHS Club

**Teehee! 49 REVIEWS! Thank you, thank you, thank you: milky way bar, Katie, Bella, Schyler, Stella9876, hot4scott68, bncsammy, Airi Fairy, Tria Marie Val, Aly, Loku, a, RedHeadedWeasley's2nm, GiggleFlower, MrDarcy, sweet-red-rose, waterfaerie15, antonia, I AM EOWYN, Miss Court-A-Doo, Tay'slilgal, Lara Potter, SafetyXPins, melissa, Aqb DK, cathyrock, aurorasakura16, Syd, Fairy Princess, Eloise, cfav, TheDaughterOfKings, sakura668, aishteru, GreenEyes, LadySimone123, Shaznay, N.C.PysChick, Celina K2, AmyChris, suckr4romance81789, Lucy the Rat, ShadowHexx771, One With A Constant Sugar High, dancerrdw, summerxkiss2, EponineWeasley, Ronsreallove, and last, but most definitely not least, the loyal email reviewer, Ellie! I hold the deepest gratitude for those wonderful reviewers who have given me so much encouragement and inspiration. I now present to you...Chapter 11, which I would like to dedicate to my good friend LadySimone123, who will be unfortunately moving many miles away come this summer. This chapter takes a more serious ntoe towards the end, but there is the usual amount of humor near the beginning. I regret to inform all the fantastic, magnificent readers and reviewers of this story that the end is near. Two or three chapters, tops. Perhaps even less. And of course an chapter full of personal thank-yous to each person who took time out of their lives to leave a review! Enjoy Chapter 11, mates! (Ah! I find myself randomly using British lingo throughout the day in school, and I'm American! I get a lot of funny glances- I simply can't stop saying, "I reckon" and "bloody"! Oh, well. The result of being totally obssessed with writing and reading fanfiction!)**

* * *

Sad thing is, I actually did take the advice of that git of a mirror and attempted to "comb that bloody hair." The only problem was, it absolutely flat-out _REFUSED _to be combed. Twenty minutes and three broken combs later, when I was stuck for the thousandth time trying to get through a particularly nasty tangle, I threw my current brush savagely across the bedroom, noting with some satisfaction the long black mark that it made on the wall. 

"Rebellious curls," I growled. "I pity anyone who is inflicted with them." Sneering unattractively, I mentally composed a not-so-nice poem that put my feelings perfectly into words. (Merlin, I am turning into quite the poet these days!)

_Just the sight of a mere bloody, darn, sodding curl,_

_Gives me the immediate desire to simply hurl!_

_Possessing a lousy sense of humor and a mind of their own,_

_I'd like to send those bloody buggers promptly home!_

_Which I can't, you see, for they currently inhabit my head,_

_I reckon I will have to constantly swear at them instead!_

_Why, oh why in Merlin was this plague inflicted on me?_

_Why, oh why does my hair always resemble the nest of a bee?_

_Grrr is all I have to say._

_Bloody, darn, sodding curls- I'm warning you- you're going to pay someday!_

_How would you feel if day in and day out wizards secretly snickered at you hair?_

_Would you hold your head high and pretend you didn't care?_

_Or would you cry at night, in the safety of your bed,_

_Sob for those who judge you based on the appearance of your head?_

_The Day of Judgment is coming, my hairy little mates,_

_Very soon you will experience the—_

Knock! Knock! Frantic pounding on the door rudely interrupted my beautiful poetry, which I'll even admit was getting more and more ridiculous by the second. And violent!

"Who's there?" I questioned at my attempt of groggily, pretending I was taking a short nap and **MOST DEFINITELY NOT HIDING FROM AN EXTREMELY SEXY REDHEAD!**

The door most unfortunately swung open even before the words were finished exiting my large mouth.

"Harry, Ginny, Fred, George, and Percy," Fred-or-George trilled, taking a perch on my unmade bed. "Here at your service."

I stared. "Aren't you two supposed to be at the joke shop? And you, Percy, at the Ministry?"

"Perce here doesn't have to be at work until 9:30." He slung an arm around his elder brother's stern, black-robe clad shoulders. "And we (he gestured to himself and Forge) have stopped in for a few minutes before the shop opens."

I raised my eyebrows suspiciously. "A likely story."

George sighed dramatically. "Fine. Harry fuggled us this morning about you and my dear brother's problems concerning DENIAL."

"He what?" It sounded rather "dirty," to tell the truth!

"He fuggled us." Fred shrugged nonchalantly. "It's a new product we're testing." He pulled a small object about the size of a compact mirror out of the side pocket in his robe. "I present to you...the fuggler! You can communicate from one place from another with these. Let me tell you, it totally scares the shi..."

"That's enough," I said firmly. Fred, as usual, completely ignored me.

" t out of people. All you have to do is hide this in someone's room, and then talk into your fuggler! Poor bloke will think he's going crazy, hearing voices! One of our most advanced and best products, if I say so myself. And also very useful," he added thoughtfully. "I reckon the Order will find it helpful."

Although I had to squelch the sudden urge to castrate Harry James Potter for alerting Fred and George of my "denial problems", I simply couldn't help but be impressed with the fuggler.

"That's a brilliant bit of magic there," I said with more than a hint of admiration in my voice.

"Oh, it was nothing," George beamed modestly. "Just a simple Inquitio Charm..."

"As fascinating as this all may be to you three," Ginny interrupted, "We do have a matter of business to conduct as quickly as possible, for some members of the "MRHS" club have other obligations this morning."

"MRHS?" I groaned, mentally preparing myself for the worst.

"Make Ron and Hermione Snog!" she snickered.

Merlin. Oh Merlin, Merlin, Merlin. Merlin, Merlin, Merlin. And did I mention OH MERLIN?

"You have got to be joking," I said weakly.

"Miss Granger, we never joke. Only prank." Fred said in a dignified, serious manner.

Percy crossed his arms. "I do believe that we ought to accomplish something in the next few minutes," he said rather testily, "Or else I am afraid this all was a huge waste of time. Right now, for instance, I could be..."

"Finishing a top-secret report on flimsy, leaky cauldron bottoms," Ginny, Fred, and George all snickered under their breath in unison.

"Precisely."

Percy can still be a real party pooper at times.

"So I take it the aim of this club is to make me Ron and I share a snog?"

"Precisely." I reckon that must be the word of the day.

"Well, you've obviously come to the wrong place. The fireworks are not going to go off between your brother and I."

"Hermione," George began dramatically, "We know about your erotic daydream concerning Ronniekins. Especially that infamous line, "Ron, you're a damn good kisser!"

This time, I literally had to sit on my hands to prevent myself from performing illegal magic and summoning a butcher knife from the kitchen to personally remove Harry James Potter's genitals slowly and painfully.

"Your boyfriend is DEAD!" I sweetly informed Ginny.

"Funny," Ginny giggled innocently. "Just five minutes ago we passionately snogged...and MORE!"

I covered my ears with my hands. "Please, Ginny, not this soon after breakfast!" Boy, at least Ron wasn't present to hear that. That reminded me... "Where's Ron?"

"Safely residing in his bedroom. I believe the events at the breakfast table were a bit too much for him to handle."

"Translation: His face is currently ten shades darker than his hair," Fred added helpfully.

"Once again, we are OFF THE TOPIC!" Percy snapped. "The aim of this club is not to stand around batting the breeze!"

"Er- right." George cleared his throat loudly.

Sounding as usual as though he had rehearsedthe following words, Percy said stiffly, "Hermione, it has come to our attention that you and my brother, Ronald BIlius Weasley both have affections for each other, but are too cowardly to let them be known. Is that correct?"

"Yes sir," I mumbled grudgingly.

"And do you plan on ever entering a dating relationship with him?"

"Yes sir." Percival Ignatius Weasley, psychologist.

"Perhaps today you will admit your feelings for him?"

"Hell no!"

"LANGUAGE!" Percy yelled.

"Sorry, Dr. Weasley."

"What did you just call me?"

"Nothing," I sniggered.

"Brother, you are being a ginormous annoyance to the woman. Let's just get to the point, shall we?" Fred suggested. "Harry, do the honors!"

Harry quickly rose to his feet and crossed the room in three giant steps to face me.

"Hermione, Ron is my best mate in the world. And I love you like the sister I never had. I care about you two SO MUCH that I have to say this. Dancing around a relationship is not a good idea right now. In fact, it's detrimental to your emotional and mental health!"

"Percy told you to say that, didn't he?"

"Guilty."

"To put it in simple terms, you have to tell Ron. Right now. You can't "wait for later," because you know what, 'Mione? Later may never come. Tomorrow Voldemort may attack and kill us all. How would you feel if you saw Ron's lifeless body lying on the ground, knowing that you never admitted your love for him?" Harry's voice started quavering and Fred, George and Percy took this as a cue to exit the room and leave for work.

"Hermione. Since that fateful day I met you and Ron on the train, I could detect a bond- love-between you two. As the years passed, I decided to just let things occur naturally. But since you two are obviously so bloody stubborn, I can't do that any longer. Any day now, death could strike us all. Like Ron's Mum said, you can't have any regrets in a time of war. And..." he broke off, blinking rapidly to fight back the tears that were threatening to fall. Taking a deep breath, he continued.

"I dunno how I could ever go on living if I were ever to lose you or Ron, Hermione. But I know it would be a hell of a lot worst if my two best mates never had the chance to explore their feelings for each other. To hold each other tight, to snog, to simply bask in the deep love that they share." The tears were now flowing freely. "The jeopardy that your lives are in is all my bloody fault. I know that. But, dammit! I'm not going to see my closest friends die because of me! And especially die with unspoken love!" That said, he fell to the ground, sobbing. I motioned for Ginny to leave the room. Tears running down my face, I knelt down beside the Boy-Who-Lived and wrapped my arms around him.

"You can't blame yourself for what is happening. What will happen in the future," I said gently, rubbing his back. He looked at me with red-rimmed eyes.

"But Hermione, it is my fault! Absolutely BLOODY EVERYTHING is my fault! I-I- I killed Sirius!" A wave of anguished sobs rocked through his whole body.

"Harry," I began firmly, "You really have to stop taking the blame! It was by fate that you were chosen to be the 'one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord.' It wasn't by your own free will. If Ron, Ginny, or I- or any of the Weasleys- or ANYONE dies in this war, you aren't responsible!"

Now he was bawling. "But I led Sirius right to death! I killed the closest link to my parents- the closest thing I had to a father!"

My heart ached for Harry. We sat there on the carpet, in each other's arms for a long time in silence.

Finally he spoke up in a hoarse voice. "Hermione, it isn't safe for you and Ron to be my friends anymore."

"Harry, you can't talk like this!"

"I mean it, 'Mione! Anyone who I let get close to me, any person whom I love dearly, Voldemort will murder!"

"You really think Ron and I are just simply going to leave your side? Never Harry, never!" My voice shook with emotion.

"It would be the safest for everyone."

"No, Harry. It wouldn't be." My mind raced frantically back to the things that Harry had shared with us concerning the prophecy.

"Dumbledore told you that you possess a certain, very powerful weapon that Voldemort lacks and will never have. Love. Ginny. Ron. Me. The Weasleys. Harry, we all love you and we will never let you stand alone!"

Harry was quiet, thoughtful. Then, "Please just do this one thing for me," he pleaded. "Tell Ron you love him. End the "battle of the hearts" once and for all. Please, Hermione, before it's too late!"

"Tell him that you love him."


	12. Snogging Ron!

**48 Reviews! WOW! First off, I would like to thank the following SUPER reviewers who reviewed Chapter 11: Avantara, Cesca Marie, daniella, Kalliein, N.C. PsyChick, hot4scott68, milky way bar, antonia, LadySimone123, Tay'slilgal, ruperlvr, sam, MysteryALASKA, I AM EOWYN, fake-truth86, Yellowgurl, sakura668, chazberry, Fairy Princess, Shaznay, silktophat, Miss Court-A-Doo, Lara Potter, RainDateChick, SuckerForGrint, cathyrock, GaBbY, sweethobbit, kitotterkat, krissy, Loku, Bella, Once With A Constant Sugar High, amrawo, Lost.Somewhere.Out.There, summerxkiss2, aishteru, Eloise, Olrysreallove, suckr4romance81789, TheDaughterOfKings, Ronsreallove, redireas, Laury Weasley, dancerrdw, EponineWeasley, Pauly-85, Moonhawkpebbly, and last, but certain not least, the AWESOME email reviewer, Ellie (Sry if I forgot anyone!). I have a VERY important question to ask: Should I write a sequel? I have the first chapter of one written (and don't worry, it's not a bunch of mindless fluff and Ron and Hermione snogging every five minutes- there's a REAL, interesting plot). However, I want to know the opinion of all the readers of this fiction. Is it worth it? Would you be willing to read a sequel? Most importantly, do you WANT to? Or would you rather just another Ron/Hermione humor/romance fic (it wouldn't be to hard to "unsequelize" my new fiction)? Anyway, if I don't end up writing a sequel, I'll post the epilouge next weekend. If I don't, then Chapter 13 will be exactly what I have been desiring to do for SO long- to individually thank each and every reviewer, especially those VERY loyal ones who have been there with me since the beginning. Opinions would be GREATLY, GREATLY appreciated! Like always, please read and enjoy Chapter 12, mates, for this may be the last in at least this particular fiction!**

* * *

"Tell him you love him." Harry's pleading words reverberated through my head. For a split-second, I had shamefully thought that it was just an act on his part- a ploy to make me admit my feelings. However, I quickly brushed that idea off and sternly chided myself. Rarely did Harry ever shed tears- in fact, I've only seen him cry one other time, and that was at the end of the fourth year. 

"Ron?" Merlin, my voice sounded SO timid!

"Go away, Ginny," came the object of my affection's raspy, muffled voice.

"The last time I checked, I do not participate in a snog-fest with the Boy-Who-Lived 24/7," I said lightly, as Ron obviously fought a huge battle in his mind- to let Hermione in, or to not. That is the question. Whether it is nobler...(For a Muggle, Shakespeare is a bloody brilliant playwright!). I didn't give him the chance to decide. With shaking hands, I gently pushed the door open.

"I didn't say you come in," he sniffed.

"I would have been disinclined to acquiesce your request," I smirked. "So I reckon it really doesn't matter."

Ron rolled those deliciously blue eyes. A smile threatening to tug at the corner of his mouth, he said quietly, "English, please, Hermione." Then he resumed staring at a nasty-looking stain on the carpet, foot jiggling anxiously from side to side. Left. Right. Left. Right. Left...wait a minute! Personally, I could not fathom his bloody problem! Sure, he had heard one of his best mates moaning his name over and over again, punctuated by interjections such as, "You're a damn good kisser!" But _honestly!_ He wasn't the unfortunate owner of that abnormally large and obnoxious mouth which couldn't be controlled even in times of slumber! He wasn't the one suffering the repercussions of having sultry daydreams at the breakfast table in front of an audience of no less than four close acquaintances, one of who was EXTREMELY SEXY! Well, two actually. Harry isn't hard on the eyes at all.

"Er- you're probably wondering why I'm here," I began, itching to just get the confession over with.

"No," Ron sat up straighter, "Please do enlighten me."

My heart literally swelled at those words. He sounded like...like...like me!

"I didn't know you knew such large words," I snorted untactfully, remembering a second to late that I was here to profess my undying love to him, not to insult any hints of intelligent life form that were finally, after six years, beginning to emerge.

His face visibly fell. "I only learn from the best. You." He reminded me grumpily.

"Well, thanks," I stammered. Though that was a bloody nice compliment, I truly wished that he would view me as not just the best intelligence-wise, but in all aspects of life! For example, a response such as, _"I only learn from who I consider to be the absolute best, most beautiful, intelligent, and witty woman in the world. You." _would have been much more appropriate. I sighed. Unfortunately, like all blokes, Ron would always be a little immature for his age. Once, in an interminable History of Magic class (which is rather boring, but since I do have a reputation to withhold, I always appear to actually be paying attention and enjoying the wealth of new knowledge Binns shares which us, such as why the Grima the Gross led a goblin rebellion in 1203. My personal response? "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn!") I had calculated that Ron only acts approximately three-quarters of his real age.

"You're in here...why?"

Hmmphh. That certainly startled me to attention.

"To see you," I giggled, sounded exactly like those ditzy girls in the romance movies.

"To see me?"

"To see you. We need to talk." My face grew serious, and that !#$&# fluttering started up in my stomach.

"We are talking," he pointed out moodily. Left. Right. Left. Right. That bloody foot was jiggling again.

I simply could not stand it any longer.

"What in Merlin is YOUR problem?" I finally exploded.

"There's nothing wrong," he muttered, a slight red tinge rising on his face.

"Well, no offense, but you seem like you're currently experiencing the male version of PMS," I snorted. "You know- PMS- what you and Harry are always whispering about whenever I am in an irate mood."

"I know what PMS is," the object of my affections snapped, his blush only deepening.

I let out a long breath. "Level with me, Ron. I am a woman..."

"Trust me, I have noticed that." I could've sworn I heard him whisper in the faintest voice under his breath.

"And I happen to be very sensitive to the feelings of others." Ron suddenly became sheepish as he was obviously remembering my nasty comment in the middle of the fifth year concerning his "emotional range of a teaspoon."

"Well, if you're so sensitive, then diagnose my problem, Doctor Granger."

Teehee. This was going to be FUN!

I walked confidently right up to him and began running my hand lightly over his light-blue-shirt-clad chest.

"What are you doing, Hermione?" he gasped loudly as though I had scorched his manly chest with white-hot pokers.

"I'm examining my patient," I said innocently, very much enjoying how his breathing was quickly becoming ragged.

"Hmm. You seem to be breathing quite irregularly and your heart is beating fast."

"Perhaps it's because you are currently touching MY chest!" Ron suggested weakly, realizing a second too late the implications of his words. I took a step closer.

"Do I really affect you that much?" I smiled angelically, planning on continuing my "examination." As I was reaching for his face, Ron reached up and grabbed my wrists with those two, strong, gentle hands of his.

"It's my turn," he said slyly.

"If you believe you are entitled to touching my upper torso, then you are quite mistaken," I reminded him as his eyes took in every inch of my body. I shivered as his gaze passed over my legs, my chest, my face, up to my eyes. Ocean-blue met honey brown as he gazed into my soul and then began his examination.

"Your skin is warm and silky to the touch," he ran a finger down my bare arm, leaving tingling skin in his wake. "Your cheeks are rosy and healthy," he cupped my cheek in his callused hand and inclined his red head towards mine in order to have a closer look.

"Your hair is shiny, silky, and gorgeous," I sighed, running my hands fervently through his locks of red as I had ached to do SO many times.

"Your have a cute nose."

"Your ears a currently a healthy shade of bright red."

"Your hands are nice and warm." Good Godric! Ron and I were now holding hands!

"Your lips are so soft-looking and delectable. I want to devour them," I babbled. DDDAAAAAAMMMMNNN! Luckily, Ron was a little bit too preoccupied to pay much attention to what I was saying.

"Your hair," he sighed, massaging my scalp with his heavenly touch. I simply melted against him. "Your hair is a beautiful mass of ringlets."

"Your lips are moving closer to my face."

"Each ringlet having a mind of its own but, blimey, I still love your hair!"

"Your lips are currently 3.84 centimeters from mine."

"Well, my diagnosis, Miss Granger, would HAVE to be..."

"Your lips are moving in for the kill," I barely got out before Ron's warm lips were suddenly covering mine. Tenderly he laid a kiss as sweet as rose petals on my mouth and pulled back. "Do I live up to your daydream?" he smirked.

"I don't think I have enough evidence quite yet," I squeaked before he flat-out passionately snogged me. I wrapped my arms around him as his wonderful mouth devoured mine. My whole body felt like it was on fire, as electricity seemed to crackle and spark between Ron and I. I was aware of everything concerning the object-of-my-affections-who-was-currently-snogging-the-hell-out-of-me. The heat emanating from his body, the delectable musky cologne he had applied earlier, the rebellious strand of hair that kept on insisting falling into his eyes, the way his body was pressing against mine, the softness of his lips, the amazing things his mouth was doing to wreak havoc on my senses.

"Yes Ron," I gasped ten minutes later, "You sure did live up..." his lips cut me off once again as he continued his assault of my mouth.

"In case you couldn't tell, Hermione," he said breathlessly thirty minutes later, "I've rather fancied you for quite some time."

"As have I," I murmured, bosom heaving, face flushed, and hair tousled. "We've been so foolish, Ron, trying to fight a battle of the hearts. Everyone except us could see the glaringly obvious truth- how we were too bloody stubborn and shy to admit our affections for each other.

Ron suddenly turned very shy as he fiddled with his wristwatch. "I've wanted to do that for quite some time, Hermione," he said softly. "You don't understand how hard it's been for the past four years, just being your best mate and knowing that nothing more could ever come out of it. That you didn't return the love."

I literally choked on my own saliva. "I didn't think I could've been more obvious. The way I totally blushed and clammed up whenever you were around...how jealous I got whenever you and Harry were checking out a hot witch...my constant staring at you...!"

"There's only one hot witch in my mind," Ron said seriously, wrapping his arms around my waist, "And she's standing right if front of me. Hermione, I have always loved you and always will."

Awwww! "I love you, Ronald Weasley, " I said in a small little voice, sudden timidness striking me.

"Now how's about we continue this little experiment?" he blue eyes sparkled mischievously.

"That's all you blokes ever think about," I mock-sighed. "Getting a good snog and shagging."

"And girls," Ron said defensively. "But don't tell me that I have never, ever occupied your thoughts recently! And as for the shagging, we'll have to do that some other time. I would really hate for Ginny and Harry to burst in unannounced during something like that."

Delicious tingles raced up and down my spine at those words. Then, it took me a full two and a half minutes to realize he was joking.

"Ha ha," I stuck out my tongue. "Very funny."

"You look cute with your tongue sticking out like that," the object of my snogs said teasingly, hovering his mouth over mine. "Shall we continue?"

I suddenly got very nervous, even though by my calculations I had been exchanging saliva with Ronald Weasley for over forty minutes "Could I take a raincheck?" I flashed him a weak grin.

"By all means." He leaned against the wall and watched me with mild interest.

Merlin, Merlin, Merlin. Did I have something to share with Ginny!

* * *

"Your brother is the absolute best kisser in the world!" I sighed with happiness. 

"Funny, I never noticed," Ginny said wryly, scratching out a line on her Charms essay. "Perhaps because I don't believe in something called INCEST!"

"But seriously, Gin," I said ecstatically, "The thing _Witch Weekly_ says about inexperienced blokes being terrible snoggers? It's codswallop, in my opinion!"

"Maybe this wasn't Ron's first kiss. You never know," she said distractedly.

"Hello, Hermione," the object of her distractions said in his signature deep, manly voice. Now, let me tell you, if I wasn't currently infatuated with Ron, I'd definitely consider his best mate. Hunky Harry was looking particularly spiffy in a tight green t-shirt that showed off those manly muscles to perfection and a pair of worn, comfy jean shorts. His raven hair was sticking up every which way, but, frankly he looked ADORABLE.

"I have heard rumors that you have spent the past forty minutes snogging Ron. Is that true?"

"Yes," I admitted cheerfully. "I do wonder, though, how talk seems to travel SO fast in this house."

"It's because we're Weasleys, dear," Mrs. Weasley peeked her head into the bedroom on her way up to the attic and gave me a ginormous sincere smile. "I'm very happy for you and Ron, Hermione. Take care of my boy, please."

"Oh, don't worry, Mrs. Weasley. I will. I will."

* * *

I simply could not keep my eyes off Ron during dinner that night. And to make matters worse, a certain set of twins decided to drop by to join their family in the evening repast. 

"We've heard a sort of celebration should be in order," Fred said triumphantly as he sat down beside me. "Pay up, Percy," he smirked to the elder Weasley. Groaning and swearing under his breath, Percy forked over three galleons. "And you, Dad." Mr. Weasley sighed and reached into the pockets of his tattered robes. "We should be receiving at least ten more galleons from Bill and Charlie very shortly through the post," he continued, "And Godric knows how much from the Gryffindors."

"And the teachers," George reminded him. "I believe Dumbledore owes us four galleons."

"McGonagall two."

"And Snape, that old fuddy-duddy, four sickles."

It took a moment for my mind to fully register what they were discussing.

"You bet on Ron and I," I accused loudly, drawing the attention of the other occupants of the table.

"Of course." Fred shrugged his shoulders. "We bet that you and our dear brother would get together before August 31st. And we obviously won!"

"No one must have had very much confidence in us, eh?" I pointed out.

"Nah. They just believed that you two were too bloody stubborn to ever give in to your feelings before your sixth year," George snickered through a mouthful of mashed potatoes.

"Well, we are no longer," I looked deep into Ron's eyes and we shared a secret smile as he squeezed my hand under the table.

* * *

"Ron?" I questioned as he reluctantly broke off from our thrilling good-night kiss. 

"Yes, Hermione?"

"You're a damn good kisser."

* * *

**Remember! I desperately need your opinion! Should I:**

**a. Just write an epilouge and a chapter of thank-yous and call this story done**

**b. Write a chapter of thank-yous and then start posting the sequel?**

**OR**

**c. Change the first chapter of my sequel around a bit so it can stand as a new, Ron/Hermione romance/humor fic and end this one. **

**Thanks in advance, ya'll!**


	13. Thank Yous!

**Hey! Since Battle of the Hearts is now officially over, and at the urging of many, many reviewers I have posted the first chapter of the sequel today, I'd like to take the time to do something I've been dying to do for so long, but never got the chance to do after about chapter 6 for fear of being reported for having too long of an Author Note: individually thank each person who reviewed. Now, it'll have to just be those who reviewed Chapter 12 (68 of you- I feel LOVED!) because anyone who reviewed earlier chapters and will possibly be reading this probably also reviewed Chapter 12. (Please, no one report this chapter cause it's totally against the rules to have just a chapter of an A/N: I'm risking the deletion of my story by doing this, but I fully trust you guys!)**

**I never dreamed when I began writing this fiction that it would receive such reviews and compliments...WOW! All I can say is THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to anyone who has ever reviewed this story for making the past nearly 3 months so wonderful for me here on So, iSo here's to all those wonderful, fantastic reviewers of Chapter 12- some who have been with me since the beginning, others who are newer but still great!**

* * *

**LadySimone123: What can I say, chica? You're one of my closest friends, and my #1 reviewer! I anxiously look forward to your comments on every chapter (by the way, girl, be happy I'm even including you because if you read in my little paragraph at the beginning, I'm really only thanking those who reviewed Chapter 12! Which YOU DIDN'T- yet! We will talk in school, chica. You ARE IN TROUBLE! LOL.) Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed each and every one of your reviews and encouragement! Please DON'T MOVE OH SO FAR AWAY! Or else you'll have Twigster to answer to!**

**LaraPotter: Hola, chica! Your high praise (which I still don't deserve, cause I'm not that good of a writer!-) made me smile with each chapter. Rock on, oh loyal reviewer, and I'm glad you enjoyed my story so much!**

**suckr4romance81789: Wow! You've been there with me for almost every chapter, and your wonderful review on Chapter 12 especially was truly one of the nicest I've ever received. Honestly, it made me cry! (tears well up in my eyes). Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU for being such a loyal, fantastic reviewer! And I would also like to wish the best of luck to you in whatever future writing you may do, and I'll be the first to read any new fiction of yours!**

**EponineWeasley: Another devoted reviewer- I knew I could look forward to one of your great reviews on every single chapter! Keep it up with your fabulous, angsty, writing, and I hope you'll stick around for the sequel to my fiction!**

**Miss Court-A-Doo: WOW! Your reviews were always the ones that meant the most to me- cuz you're such a talented, magnificent writer! (Not that all you other reviewers aren't!) Your comments and compliments always gave me much encouragement and hope- seeing as you're 5 years older than me, in college, and a fantastic writer, but still thought highly of my story! I'll never forget one certain review where you said that my "writing talent was indescribable," that "this is the most wonderfully fluffy, angsty, on-the-edge-of-confessions fic I've ever read in my entire life..." The best review I have ever received in my entire life! Best wishes for any future writing of yours- and please update "Confessions!"**

**milky way bar: Yes, unfortunately this fiction 'tis over. But never fear! The sequel is here! (Sorry- very cliché!). I'm thrilled that you enjoyed this story so much, and I hope you read the continuation of "Battle of the Hearts." Thank you to a loyal reviewer!**

**I AM EOWYN: I may consider your suggestion...you never know. Ron popping the question may come up eventually... Thanks to a devoted reviewer who also happens to appreciate fine literature such as Lord of the Rings! (Love your penname, in case I never told you that before!). Good luck in all your future writings.**

**Pauly-85: Oooh, that's a definite possiblitiy. (Smiles mysteriously). You never know! Thanks to a loyal, devoted reviewer- I'm thrilled you loved my story! ROCK ON! **

**DaughterOfKings: I'm happy you enjoyed my fiction for SO many chapters. I would like to wish you the best of luck in any of your future LOTR writings, (please continue with the poems- they're EXCELLENT!) and thank you for being a loyal reviewer whose opinion I valued highly! **

**One With A Constant Sugar High: I always loved the end of your reviews with the somewhat random sayings, (i.e., "In an attempt to kill a fly, I drove into a telephone pole."). LOL!** **Thank you for being a kind, devoted reader and reviewer for SO long!**

**Loku: WOW, that is a high honor! I'm glad you enjoyed my story so much, and I would like to thank you for giving great reviews to many of these chapters! I just read your profile and guess what? I have bushy hair too! And like yours, it's curly! I like to call it my high-management hair. LOL. (sighs) Those people with straight hair who make fun of my excessive volume? They're just jealous they having boring, flat hair! (No one get offended, please!). Thank you to the chica with an out-of-control bush like me!**

**goblin monkey: Thank you to a loyal, wonderful reviewer! I really appreciated your kind compliments and comments on each chapter- ROCK ON! **

**N.C.PysChick: I really appreciated your encouraging, somewhat humorous reviews- they made me giggle! Good luck in all your future writings (I apologize for not reviewing "The New Workout Plan," but it was FUNNY! Great job!) and thank you for being such a loyal, kind reviewer!**

**Alli-Baby: Chica, you have been there since Chapter 1 and for that, you deserve a ginormous cookie! (I believe you're the only one who's been with me since the beginning, back in February!). Thank you for your wonderful comments, oh LOYAL REVIEWER!**

**doodlebug19: Thank you for your praise! I too love reading fluffy Ron/Hermione romances- thus why I wrote this one! I hope you stick around for the sequel!**

**sakura: That's an excellent idea. I'm hoping that in my sequel I will get into more of a real plot- possibly even involving Voldemort! (shivers). Thanks for the great suggestion!**

**GreenEyes: Yeah, I had misgivings about Chapter 11 too- but I was finishing it at 6:30 in the morning so I could post it before I left for orchestra rehearsal, so that's my excuse for the unbelievablity of it (I really don't think Harry would break down like that either, but you have to admit that some day in the book he'll probably have to "crack"- no one can bottle up their emotions for THAT long of a time!) Thanks for great reviews! And yes, there will be tension between Ron and Hermione- you'll just have to read to find out! (cackles!)**

**hot4scott68: (Smiles!) I never dreamt that this story would be loved by so many- thanks for being one of the bunch and also an inspiring reviewer!**

**SafetyXpins: You will see what happens next by...reading the sequel! Wow! Two of your three favorite stories are mine! One of these days I'll have to update "Those Emerald Eyes," I reckon. THANKS!**

**AstaOmega11: I'm truly glad that you enjoyed my story- thanks for the great review and, if you please, stick around for the sequel!**

**rainydyz07 (sakura668): Yes, there will definitely be some action, adventure, suspense- the story is NOT all mindless fluff like this one was. I hope you did excellent on your AP tests (next year I'll be taking my first one!) I look forward to reading your fiction- please email me or notify me somehow when it's posted! Best wishes for your writing, and thank you for giving such sweet reviews!**

**Tria Marie Val: Thank you for your very kind review! Unfortunately, there will be no epilogue, just a sequel. Hopefully you'll enjoy it just the same!**

**emmadarling026: Wow! You actually sat down for 2 hours and read my story? That makes me feel VERY special! Teehee! Don't worry- I do have a great idea for the sequel- I just hope everyone likes it!**

**rachyluvsgrint112: I totally agree with you! Ron and Hermione humor/romance fics all the way! Thanks for a great review, and I hope you'll stick around to read the sequel!**

**Syd: I am posting the sequel, and I will definitely email you the link later today! Thanks for your great reviews!**

**Antonia: Yes, I believe I have a good, solid, exciting plot planned! I'm thrilled you enjoy my fiction that much! Rock on and thank you for superb reviews!**

**Weie Nelke: Aww, I'm not THAT good of a writer! Thanks anyways, though! I wish you the best of luck in all your future writings, and thank you for your very uplifting reviews!**

**greeneyemagiccatfairys: I'm glad you liked it! I had such fun writing this story- especially the humorous parts. THANKS!**

**swimminggodess21: LOL! Gah, I hate when my friends are like, "You just said reckon! What is WRONG with you?" I'm glad you enjoyed this story. ROCK ON, and thank you for your kind reviews!**

**ShadowHexx771: YEA! Your review nearly brought tears to my eyes. I do reckon, however, that there is a better Ron/Hermione story out there somewhere, but I'll still accept the big cookie! Thank you very much for your sweet reviews!**

**kitottercat: I know- I was very surprised that my story got the large amount of reviews that it did! The problem is that there's so many stories on and not a lot of reviews to go around! Thanks to a loyal reviewer and a BIG, BIG fan! This review made me giggle. (i.e., "You're damn good at what you do.) LOL! I sincerely hope you enjoy the sequel, oh wonderful person!**

**waterfaerie15: Thanks! I wouldn't be TOO sure about that, but I appreciate it the same. Stick around for the sequel!**

**Lucy the Rat: Interesting penname, by the way. LOL! I'm glad you enjoyed my story so much, and thanks for the excellent reviews!**

**Ale O: AWWW! One of the best reviews I've ever received. I appreciate your high praise immensely! Thank you VERY much for brightening my day, oh excellent, kind person! I would love it if you would read the sequel!**

**Orient Fox: Alas, it is done. Unfortunately, I won't be writing a Harry/Ginny sequel, but perhaps one of these days I'll write a Harry/Ginny humor/romance...thanks for the great review!**

**fake-truth86: THANKS! Even though I'm not taking option C, I would be neat, if you would like, if you would stick around to read the sequel! I enjoyed your reviews. ROCK ON!**

**KK: TEEHEE! THANKS! I do feel it needs a sequel though, which is why I have posted the first chapter to one! Glad you enjoyed this fic!**

**Aqb: Never fear, I have update soon- with the sequel! Read and enjoy, mate! And thanks for a great review!**

**Rozie: I'm truly sorry that I didn't mention you- I received your review RIGHT AFTER I had posted. I'm thrilled you think I'm a brilliant writer! Thank you! And, yes, I am taking option B!**

**AmyChris: (chants) THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!) The sequel is coming- actually, I posted the first chapter today! I am pretty proud of myself- thanks for your endearing compliments on this chapter and the others!**

**gabby: Yes, I will be writing more Ron/Hermione fanfiction, starting with...the sequel! THANKS! And ROCK ON!**

**amrawo: They will be at Hogwarts for the sequel! I'm thrilled you enjoyed my story SO much. Thank you!**

**Unknownspecies: (Giggles) Your review made me snicker. I would love to read some of your fiction (if you write) because you definitely have a way with words! Thanks for the humorous, kind review!**

**RainDateChick: Well, I hope you love the sequel! Thank you for your great reviews, and ROCK ON!**

**SilentRave987: I'm happy you found this story- thanks for the praise and VERY nice compliments! Don't worry- I will continue writing as time permits!**

**sweethobbit: Love the penname, by the way! Thank you for your excellent reviews, and I will try my best to keep up the good work!**

**Zelina: Thanks! I will right more ASAP- like RIGHT NOW! LOL.. Glad you enjoyed the story!**

**trumpsgal: Well, there's not epilogue, but there IS a sequel—thanks for the kind review and ROCK ON! **

**Lady Megan: Wow, that's kinda creepy- but I'm thrilled it turned up in your faves anyways! THANKS for the compliments! **

**Rupertlover14: AWW! I made you go aww? I'm sorry to see it end too, cuz I had SO much fun writing it. THANK YOU very much!**

**aurorasakura16: Well, you got your wish...a SEQUEL! Thanks to a devoted reviewer who never failed to bring a smile to my face!**

**Avantara: I do? Thank you very much! That makes me VERY, VERY, VERY HAAAAPPPYYY!**

**feather: I'm glad you enjoyed it SO MUCH...I am doing B! Thanks!**

**silktophat: Yes, it did help- I asked for reviewers' opinions and you gave yours! Hope you will choose to read and hopefully enjoy the sequel!**

**SpaceyChic468: Yea, it take take them quite some time. But that was the fun of it- draw it out for so long! THANK YOU very much!**

**Bella: I would have to say well done on an awesome story for you too- I thoroughly enjoyed your fiction! Best luck in any future writing, chica! And THANK YOU!**

**Eloise: Well, then I hope you'll love the sequel! Yes, I'll try to keep up the good work! Thank you for your kind reviews- I really appreciated them!**

**Olyrsreallove: Would a sequel be nicer? LOL. Thank you for your kind review, and I hope you'll stick around to read the sequel!**

**xox.AnniePotter.xox: Smiles! I'm happy you enjoyed this story so much! Ron IS adorable! THANKS!**

**Fairy Princess: Hello, oh number one fan in the world! LOL. I really appreciate your excellent reviews- especially the one of Chapter 12. I'm so sorry it had to end there too! THANK YOU immensely! And a huge chocolate chip cookie to you!**

**PhoenixWings13: I know- I hate it when stories just end, and I also wish that an author would just never stop! Though I am not taking option A, I am writing a sequel! THANKS for a very kind review and ROCK ON!**

**sailorstarryeyes: Yes! I am writing a sequel! I would like to thank you for your endearing reviews that made me smile. **

**cathyrock: THANKS for your great reviews- I really appreciated them! AWW! I'm glad you think that!**

**Ihateharryandhermioneshippers: So do I- don't worry! (That's in response to your penname!) Glad you enjoyed it, and thanks for the neat compliment!**

**Tay'slilgal: I am leaving it just at that- until the sequel, that is. ROCK ON, and thank you, loyal reviewer!**

**RonandHarrybothbelongtome (I WISH!): I wish that too! Love your penname, by the way! Teehee! I loved making Dumbledore bet with them- he really isn't an old fuddy-duddy like Snape! LOL! I will write a sequel. Thanks!**

**redireas: Rowling totally should go into details about snogging- imagine the response of parents of young children? Lol! I would like to thank you for your wonderful compliments on my writing style- it meant A LOT to me! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!**

**dancerrdw: Yes, I will be posted a sequel! Thanks to a loyal reviewer who always made me smile!**

**lacatamar: Snogging means kissing, and shagging (well, more than kissing, if you know what I mean- something very dirty!). THANK YOU for your very endearing compliments that I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY appreciated!**

**aishteru: I know you didn't review Chapter 12, but that's alright. You're a very loyal, devoted reviewer, and I would like to thank you for always brightening up my day with your wonderful reviews! **

* * *

**Sorry if I forgot anyone! Again, I would like to THANK everyone and wish everyone who writes the BEST OF LUCK WITH THEIR FICTION!**

**TOOTLES, AND HOPE YA'LL ENJOY THE SEQUEL!**

**YOU GUYS ARE SERIOUSLY MAGNIFICENT, FANTASTIC, WONDERFUL, SUPERB, AND READERS AND REVIEWERS! ROCK ON!**


End file.
